New group exhibition coming to Dundalk's Downtown Hub

A new group exhibition opening at Creative Spark Downtown Hub, Clanbrassil Street, Dundalk, presents a body of analogue photographic works inspired by Brigid as a symbol of place, transformation, and embodied making.

The exhibition opens with a public launch on Thursday 29 January at 7pm.

Rooted in slow, material-led processes, the works engage directly with land, light, and time, allowing the environment itself to shape each image.

Above: Kelp at low tide, 35mm film developed using bladderwrack seaweed developer and eco fixer outside in the en plein air darkroom, Bullock Harbour, 2025

All photographs have been developed using plant-based or sustainable darkroom techniques, foregrounding an environmentally conscious approach to image-making.

Alongside traditional analogue photography, the exhibition features a series of site- responsive experiments that extend the photographic encounter beyond the studioand into the living landscape.

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Highlights include a collective project of seaweed lumen prints created on Blackrock Beach during a workshop led by Maria McSweeney.

These works respond to coastal edges, upland paths, and sites connected to local myth and seasonal cycles, emphasising photography as a collaborative and place-based practice.

Together, the exhibition reflects a deep engagement with landscape, ecology, and alternative photographic processes, offering a contemplative exploration of how images can emerge through attentive interaction with the natural world.