Touring West Cork, Kilkenny & Dublin Feb-Jun 2012

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About Young Makers

Kids’ Own is delighted to be the co-ordinator of this national tour of international young people’s art work, in collaboration with four Irish partners: West Cork Arts Centre, Kilkenny County Council Arts Office, South Dublin County Council Arts Office (through its NOISE South Dublin programme), and Temple Bar Cultural Trust.

Kids’ Own is a children’s arts organisation and publishing house. Our ethos is rooted in respect for children and their creative endeavours. We aim to raise the status of children’s creative skills as writers and artists to a wider audience. Over the past 14 years, Kids’ Own has been developing a way of working with children and the professionals who work with children, which seeks to be collaborative and holistic. Working with children of all ages, we believe that interagency approaches and partnerships provide a stronger and a more sustainable framework within which to reach children through the arts at all stages of their development.

The genesis of this project was in 2010, when Kids’ Own was invited by Sally Stuudio in Tallinn, Estonia to be the Irish curator for Eksperimenta! – a new international triennial of young people’s artwork. This programme was targeted at young people between the ages of 14 and 19.

We were delighted to receive submissions of art work from across Ireland, most of which had been created through collaborative processes between professional artists and young people and reflected a process-led approach to art enquiry. We particularly encouraged submissions of digital and photographic work and the diversity of the work among the final selection strongly and positively represented the creativity and imagination of Irish young people, and held up firmly within the international context of Eksperimenta! Furthermore, the stop motion animation made by the young artists from Kilkenny won them the award for “Most Promising Young Artists” which was an incredible achievement and a very positive outcome from the project.

As a continuation of this success, Kids’ Own saw the opportunity to bring some of the work from Eksperimenta! together into a new touring exhibition within Ireland. The network of Irish partners was brought about through an interest among some of those who had submitted work to the original exhibition in connecting together and collaborating on a new national programme. The international partners who participated in Eksperimenta! were invited to re-submit their work for this new Irish exhibition, and four countries – Canada, Latvia, Slovenia and Portugal – responded with submissions. We are delighted now to bring this all together into the Young Makers exhibition and programme.

With a programme of activities being developed by each partner, the vision of this project is to connect practice and to profile and celebrate the creativity of young people, both in Ireland and internationally. As the co-ordinator of Young Makers, Kids’ Own recognises the need to respect the approaches of each of the Irish partners, and to provide space for them to develop a programme of activity that meets their local objectives, while also initiating a national dialogue through the touring framework. The Young Makers programme will also embrace the opportunity to dialogue with artists – through Practice.ie development meetings – to explore methodologies and approaches to working with young people, and to build skills for continued best practice.

Our aim is to build a strong partnership, through which we can continue to learn and reflect, and build more long-term, in-depth programmes in the future. By showcasing the best of the work that is already happening, the Young Makers exhibition provides a platform for discussion about what we should be aiming to achieve in the future; how we can continue strenghtening and developing the sector together.

Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership

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About the partners 3

THE VENUES

West Cork Arts Centre 4Kilkenny County Council Arts Office 6

No Grants Gallery, Temple Bar Cultural Trust 8

THE COUNTRIES

Canada 10Ireland 12Latvia 14Portugal 16Slovenia 18

Acknowledgements 20

Contents

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About The Partners.

The Young Makers exhibition will appear in three venues when it tours Ireland in 2012

West Cork Arts Centre 24 Feb-16 Mar 2012West Cork Arts Centre was established in 1985 in Skibbereen, Co. Cork. It is a publicly funded arts facility that creates opportunities for the people of West Cork to have access to, and engagement with, local and global arts practice of excellence. It supports a multi-disciplinary arts programme with a focus on contemporary visual art and a range of education and community programmes for adults and children. The centre places education at the heart of its activities with a wide range of arts workshops, community-based projects, film screenings, book launches, poetry readings and performances, seminars, talks and gallery tours on offer throughout the year. WCAC is a resource and development agency, providing expertise and resources to assist artists, other arts organisations, groups and individuals to realise arts projects.- Alison Cronin, West Cork Art Centre

Kilkenny County Council Arts Office 30 Mar-26 Apr 2012Kilkenny County Council Arts Office plans, facilitates, educates, assists, advises, arranges, directs, contracts, converses, coordinates and orchestrates a hugely diverse programming embracing all art forms. We deal with issues of deficiency, confidence, pride, sense of place, inclusion, social, economic, cultural and aesthetic need. Over the years projects have included: site specific works such as The Last Lot, a theatre project both mourning and celebrating the demise of the Kilkenny livestock mart after fifty years of trade; an extensive artists residency programme and visual art exhibitions; literary publications and mentoring; and youth and community projects including Siamsa, our children’s arts activities, and Building Cultural Communities course. - Mary Butler, Kilkenny Arts Office

NOISE South Dublin and Temple Bar Cultural Trust 3 May-30 May 2012NOISE South Dublin is an initiative of South Dublin County Council’s Arts Office as part of its Youth Arts Programme. NOISE aims to celebrate the creativity of young people, ages 13 – 25, in South Dublin County. It does so through www.noisesouthdublin.com where young people can network with peers and professional artists, gain access to arts programmes and activities and work with a NOISE Artist in Residence. For more information visit the website or find us on FACEBOOK. - Victoria Durrer (NOISE)

Located in the heart of Dublin’s cultural quarter, Temple Bar Cultural Trust (TBCT) is in the business of bringing culture closer to people. TBCT’s audience programmes include ‘Get Active’ – a cultural programme for the active retired; ‘Culture Club for Kids’ – an arts club for ages 9 – 13 and ‘Scene Not Herd’ for 15 – 19 year olds. Scene Not Herd delve into the arts and cultural sector and get an opportunity to upload their views online: http://www.templebar.ie/getinvolved/scenenotherd. Mentored by TBCT, Scene Not Herd also coordinate their own events, talks & exhibitions.- Eimear Chaomhanach (TBCT), No Grants Gallery, Dublin

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West Cork Arts Centre 24 Feb-16 Mar 2012

Aims of the WCAC engagement programme with the Young Makers exhibition: The Young Makers Exhibition launches at West Cork Arts Centre as part of our annual Youth Event, 24 February – 16 March 2012.

West Cork Arts Centre believes that there is huge potential for young people to meaningfully engage in arts experiences, and that the process of experiencing art and participating in the making of art should be based on the principles of autonomy, equality, empowerment, participation and experiential learning.

This exhibition is a celebration of that engagement, both within West Cork, throughout Ireland, and internationally. West Cork Arts Centre has a thriving youth arts programme resulting in an annual exhibition of high quality artwork produced through the centre’s involvement with second level schools and young people. However, based in an isolated rural region as we are, the opportunity to be inspired by the work of other young people from across Ireland and the world and to feel part of an international youth arts movement is invaluable. This exhibition allows young people, teachers, artists and parents to see for themselves the potential of contemporary art practice within education and youth work, and the quality of work made by young people.

The Irish artwork in the exhibition was all produced through youth programmes from across the country. The international work originates from a variety of contexts including formal and non-formal education. This presents us with a chance to reflect on the educational opportunities contemporary art experiences can provide, and to explore new ways in which we can support and encourage young people’s interest. Focusing on second level schools as the main point of contact for young people, we will be working with schools throughout the region to encourage engagement with the exhibition and wider programme as an introduction to the possibilities of contemporary youth arts practice and to explore ways to bring contemporary art and the informal and formal education sectors closer together. West Cork Arts Centre will exhibit work from Canada, Ireland, Latvia, Portugal and Slovenia.

http://www.westcorkartscentre.com http://www.yaac.ie http://www.facebook.com/youthartswcachttp://www.youngmakers.net

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Programme details

West Cork Arts Centre’s programme of events kicks off with a celebratory opening event to launch the national tour.

Young Makers exhibition openingFriday, 24 February 2012 Including music from a young local band, and refreshments. All welcome. 4.30pm – 6.30pm

Contemporary youth arts practice and the second level curriculum – Building bridges seminarSaturday, 25 February

A seminar event, in partnership with the West Cork Education Centre, will provide a platform for dialogue between contemporary youth arts practice and the current second level curriculum. It is aimed primarily at second level art teachers, but will also include both young people and artists who work with young people. This event aims to find ways in which contemporary practice can be explored within the current constraints of the second level curriculum and engage teachers with those methods found more commonly in non-formal youth arts practice. It also aims to acknowledge the needs of the educational sector and to explore ways in which contemporary art practitioners, working within the youth sector, can support those needs through engaging with the curriculum in new and constructive ways.

Second level exhibition programmeAvailable from 27 February – 16 March

Gallery tours and workshops for second level school groups will encourage teachers and their students to engage with the exhibition and explore practical ways to bring contemporary approaches into the classroom.

Friday Night Youth Arts open studio sessionFriday 9 March 4.30- 6.30pm

An open workshop session with WCAC’s Friday Night Youth Arts group and project artist Sheelagh Broderick will showcase the potential of non-formal youth arts programmes, and invites young people from across the region to come along and engage in a practical way with this ongoing project to develop a site-specific off-site installation for the Skibbereen Arts Festival in summer 2012. Regular FNYA participants will welcome and encourage visitors to get involved and contribute to this project funded by the Arts Council’s Young Ensembles Scheme.

Second level film programme Friday, 2 March and Friday 9 March

This short programme of film screenings for Second Level school groups, in partnership with Irish Film Institute Education and the West Cork Education Centre, is aimed at encouraging teachers from across the curriculum to use the medium of film as a tool for teaching.

Booking is essential for all of the above events, other than the opening.

For more information please see our websites, phone us on +353 (0) 28 22090, or email alison@westcorkartscentre.com

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Kilkenny County CouncilArts Office 30 Mar-26 Apr 2012

Aims of the Kilkenny County Council Arts Office engagement programme with the Young Makers exhibition:

Young Makers launches in Kilkenny County Council Arts Office, no. 76 John Street on Friday March 30th 2012

The Kilkenny submission to the origin of this touring show, Eksperimenta!, was created by a group of young Kilkenny people aged fourteen to nineteen during workshops facilitated by our then resident artist Vanessa Daws. In Tallinn our group of talented young animators walked away with a prestigious prize selected from more than 800 entries from 13 countries, for Most Promising Young Artists.

In order to maximise on the award won by these young makers I felt it was imperative that we capitalise on this opportunity to advance and progress our engagement with young people from Kilkenny and beyond and be part of this joint venture. Bringing this show to Kilkenny will expose youth workers, teachers, young people and the public at large to a small but wonderful taster of the enormous abilities and talents of young people from around the globe. It will provide an insight to their imaginations and inspirations. Our complementary workshop programme

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will inflate this opportunity for young people and the audience at large to experience and participate in further creative activities. We will put out an open invitation for participants and contributors and also engage with schools and existing youth groups in the city and county.

Within this programme we will endeavour to give a voice to young people enabling them to exemplify, to illustrate and represent in their own way what they really think about art and how they encounter it. We will provide them with an opportunity to weigh up their experiences of creating and making, both inside and outside the formal education system and to explore how we get more people to take the leap into their own creativity. We will offer up opportunities to explore an expansive idea of what creativity is and how we can best communicate this. Through a special mixture of talking, drawing and moving, participants will get to have their say and together build all their “say”s into an “our say” that challenges the status quo of what art is, how creativity works, and what young people can contribute. Practical skills workshops will also engage young people in topical activities and pure fun. Ultimately this project will bring young people together to engage in contemporary art and making in both a practical and conceptual manner and allow them to explore their own creative potential and inventiveness.

http://www.kilkennycoco.ie/eng/Services/Arts/http://www.youngmakers.net

The Kilkenny County Council Arts Office will exhibit work from Canada, Ireland, Latvia, Portugal and Slovenia.

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NGG: No Grants Gallery, 3-30 May 2012

Temple Bar Cultural Trust

Aims of the TBCT and NOISE engagement programme with the Young Makers Exhibition:

The No Grants Gallery|NGG is the final destination of the Young Makers exhibition having toured to West Cork Arts Centre and Kilkenny Arts Office. As each gallery space differs in size and capacity, the selection of work exhibited has been tailored for each space and to fulfil the aims of each partner in this touring process.

As NOISE South Dublin and Temple Bar Cultural Trust’s Scene Not Herd delivers vibrant youth arts programmes, our aim is to engage young people in the Dublin area with high quality works created by young people nationally and internationally. In order to achieve this, we have devised a workshops series that will complement the works exhibited. The aim is that this exhibition will resonate well with other young people and from this new work will be created.

To generate new ideas, learning and creativity, we are holding workshops in photography, collage/ animation, film-making and spoken-word – the fruits of which will be exhibited and built on during the three week exhibition run.

Collaborating with the youth arts project in axis:Ballymun, we are staging a live performance in the No Grants Gallery performed and written by young people in response to the work exhibited in the Young Makers exhibition. This will take place on the last day of the entire Young Makers tour, Wednesday 30 May.

The overall aim of bringing Young Makers to NGG is to provide a platform for young people’s artistic practice and talent created in Ireland and internationally. The hope is to inspire young people by the work, ability and potential that is there. The opportunity exists to learn from this exhibition and in so doing, engage more young people via multi-media workshops and learning techniques. The result is the creation of new work and ideas and potentially developing further youth-led artistic initiatives.

The No Grants Gallery will exhibit work from Canada, Ireland, Latvia and Slovenia.

http://www.templebar.ie/http://www.noisesouthdublin.com/http://www.youngmakers.net

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Programme details

Opening of Young Makers exhibition in NGGThursday, 3rd May 2012, 5 – 8pm

Young Makers opens in the No Grants Gallery, Temple Bar’s Cultural Trust, 12 East Essex Street, D.2.

Cut paper, collage and animation workshopWed, 9 May, 3– 6pm

Inspired by works exhibited, artist Maeve Clancy facilitates a cut paper and animation workshop. Maeve is an animator, illustrator and artist based in Dublin and her work ranges from creating comics, including the weekly webcomic Flatmates; animation and drawings to exhibitions and cut paper installation. Maeve recently created paper cut design for the music video of I Don’t Know by Lisa Hannigan. Work created by participants during this session will be animated and exhibited for the remainder of the Young Makers show.

Film-making workshopWed, 16 May, 3– 6pm

Filmmakers Shane Hogan and Tom Burke of Areaman Productions will be working with young people to create a documentary inspired by the themes of ‘identity’ and ‘space’ having explored and discussed the works exhibited. The workshop will include access to high quality film equipment and editing software. Shane and Tom will take participants through the steps to creating their own film.

Tom and Shane have vast experience in creative documentary filmmaking, which includes the feature documentary series, The Liberties. They also recently unveiled their new short The Fisherman in a special premiere programme at the year’s 56th Corona Cork Film Festival in 2011. The film was part of the Bord Scannán na hÉireann/The Irish Film Board (BSÉ/IFB) and Reality Bites shorts programme.

Digital photography workshop with Aoife GilesWed, 23 May, 3 – 6pm

Combining the participants’ photographic interests with an exploration of the art works in the Young Makers exhibition, this workshop will invite participants to create a series of images from around Dublin City Centre and the gallery itself.

Led by an experienced photographer and educator with all materials provided, this workshop will provide an exciting opportunity to engage with the exhibition and to create stunning photographs while learning tangible photographic skills.

Work created during the workshop will then be viewed and discussed in NGG and available to download on the Young Makers website, www.youngmakers.net.

Live spoken word performance by axis:Ballymun youth arts projectWed, 30 May, 6-8pm, Location: NGG / The Culture Box

A live performance will mark the end of the Young Makers touring exhibition and workshop series in NGG. Developed by axis:Ballymun, this showcase of original song, music, spoken word and dance, will see a group of young people from Ballymun engage in a month-long workshop series facilitated by artist and performer Elayne Harrington. Over the four weeks these young performers will react and respond to the Young Makers exhibition pieces and will use these paintings/installations as inspiration for their own writing and music. The showcase will be followed by a discussion open to participants and the floor, facilitated by Emma Connors of axis:Ballymun.

Booking is essential for all workshop participation. For more information please visit our websitesor phone NOISE on Ph: 01 - 4149000; ext 4606 OR NGG / TBCT on (01) 677 2255.

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Curatorial ConceptExecutive members from the Canadian Society for Education through Art curated the Canadian exhibition for Eksperimanta! The curators selected works from fourteen to nineteen year old students involved in art courses creating new media digital artworks, ranging in media from photography to video. These artworks have been collected from students across Canada representing teenagers from a variety of nationalities, a range of provincial areas and from extremely diverse backgrounds.

Dr. Joanna Black (University of Manitoba) & Dr. Miriam Cooley (Universtiy of Alberta)

Andrew VinebergOed und Leer | Still from Video

“Oed und Leer” (from Tristan and Isolde’s “Öd und Leer das Meer” - desolate and empty is the sea) is a multimedia piece using video, stop mo-tion and photography to examine humankind’s relationship with space and how it relates to hu-man perceptions of time and matter, the idea of having enough space in our lives and the various spaces that separate human beings from nature, technology, our past, our society and each other.

The Artworks

Vanessa SinghKanita | 75 x 90cm | Photography

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CANADA

Lauren SmerchanskiAfter September 11

75 x 90cm | PhotographyJulia Clark Richard | 90 x 65cm | Photography

Yvonne FengHardship | 70 x 100cm | Photography

The photography was inspired by artist Shirin Neshat as part of an exploration of Canada as a multicultural country populated by people from all over the world.

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Curatorial ConceptThe vision and curatorial concept for the Irish selection of work was to showcase new ideas, imagination and inspiration in responce to the broad theme of “Space” by young people in Ireland. The responces reflected both the literal and the abstract,

as “spaces in the mind” and “emotional connections with space” were selected to draw continuity across the work.

The intention of this work is to celebrate the collaborations and to honour the work of these young artists.

Orla Kenny (Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership)

Friday Night Youth ArtsMy Mind is a Map | 59.4 x 81.4cm | Drawing, AudioMy Mind is a Map was made by the members of FNYA at West Cork Arts Centre, working with artist Julia Pallone, writing a line of text that described an emotion, thought or memory as a virtual space or landscape inside their mind. The poem was written in a dream-like font, creating a drawing of a person’s profile.

The Artworks

CLICK-CLICK Project | I | VideoCLICK-CLICK is an integrated arts project with St. Kevin’s Family Resource Centre undertaken by young people from the Irish Wheelchair Association Youth Service and the Tallaghtfornia Foróige Club (supported by Tallaght Youth Service) in collaboration with

Artist Aileen Lambert.

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IRELAND

Mandy TaylorUntitled | 59.4 x 42cm | Photography

Various (Kilkenny Arts Office)Stop Motion Animation | Animation

During her residency organised by Kilkenny Arts Ofiice, artist Vanessa Daws undertook stop motion animation workshops with a group of

young people aged 14-19.

Zoe ShieldsCoffee and Cigarettes | Drawing, Collage

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CuratorialConceptMy Space of Thoughts, Ideas and Relations - Closed? Active? Proactive?

The young artists explored their relations with the society and the surrounding world, basing their ideas for the work on the events around them and the environment.

The young artists demonstrated a very diverse spectrum of attitudes towards communication and relationships with people and the surrounding world - from total isolation to provocative action.

Ilze Kupca (Art educator, Mag. Paed.)

Lidija Zaneripa Flash of Mind | Mixed Media, Paper

The Artworks

Annija KorpaI am different

| Cardboard, Wood, Fabric, Wool, Crayons

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LATVIA

Gints ZilbalodisPassers-by | 120 x 50cm | Digital Print

Marta Viktorija Agruma

Wear Your Own Lives!

| Oil, Cardboard,

Mirror

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The Artworks

Ana Patrícia Goncalves & Edna Loureiro Urban Time | Still from Video

PORTUGAL

Leia RegoSpace End

| Stop-motion Animation

Curatorial ConceptThe concept for the Portuguese works focuses on the visions of time in the space of young artists’ creation. Time and space are dimensions of the reality traditionally separated by the Newtonian concept of science which was revised in the course of the last century. For us, time is non-linear and space is discontinuous.

Time and space overlap, especially in a society characterised by virtual spaces, speed and travelling. The notions of distance, territory and frontiers interact in the possible ubiquity of fragmentation. In our world, observations about reality are observer-dependent, which implies a certain degree of subjectivity, and the notions of space are permeated in time in the gaze of the explorer. So, taking the artist as explorer of space through time, we intend to make visible their reports about what they are experiencing in terms of subjective knowledge.

Ana Maria Franco Barbero (Curator, cultural project manager)

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Curatorial ConceptI base my work on two principles: an engaged attitude toward the world and a democratic approach to work. I see myself primarily as an organiser and initiator who creates and opens up the space for young peoples’ artistic endeavours and who stimulates their expression. As the need arises, I also assume the roles of a mentor, an interlocutor or a guide. Juvenile art

is specific beacuse it reflects again and again the attitude of their creators towards the same issues which seem eternal and typical of every rising generation.

I conceived the exhibition as an open studio, a kind of laboratory which showcases different approaches to art.

Nina Ostan (Art journalist)

The Artworks

Tia Cicek, Dora Trcek,Asja Kunaver, Neza Prelog

Make Me - But Be Careful What You Wish For, Dedicated to MA

| Performance, VideoThe concept in “Make Me” that we are working with, or rather building on, deals with relationships, false assumptions based on appearence alone and wishes that could

backfire.

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SLOVENIA

Urska SavicPhotography | Photography

Everyone has their own way to express how they see the world around them. But the way in which we present them to others is what makes us different. This work is about capturing the way people view

the world around them.

v v

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ALL CONTRIBUTING ARTISTSCANADA (Curator: Dr. Joanna Black, University of Manitoba)

Julia Clark, Yvonne Feng , Ksenia Ogolikhina, Victoria Schaeffer, Vanessa Singh, Lauren Smerchanski, Andrew Vineberg

IRELAND (Curator: Orla Kenny, Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership)

Foróige Castlerea Neighbourhood Youth Project: Darerca Beirne, Nuala Flannery, Kellie Flynn, Aine Keenan, Mandy TaylorRAD Youth Project, Roscommon: Ashling Harte, Laura Hoare, John-Joe MonganCLICK-CLICK, St Kevin’s Family Resource Centre, South Dublin: Bob Ayeni, Erika Boucher, Conor Brien, Cliodhna Caslin, Jonathan Colgan, Lisa Germaine, Rebecca Healy, Andrew Hyland, Jodie Maxwell, Rian Wade, Saoirse Wade, JJ WardWheelworks/ Concorde Community Centre, Belfast: Amy, Amy, Ashleigh, Beau, Curtis, Demi, Jordan, Jordan, Lara, Sarah, Thomas Kilkenny Arts Office, Kilkenny: Feibhár Baldwin-Wall, Eanna Brennan, Joe Carroll, Jake Casey, Niall Cooper, Tracy Dalton, Donacha Foley, James McGrath, Aodhagan Murphy, Stephen O’ConnorFriday Night Youth Arts Group, West Cork Arts Centre: Georgia Connell Bass, Casey King, Ethan Lawlor, Connie McKenna, Jemoké Murphy, Conor O’Driscoll, Bríd O’Mahoney, Amelia Perry, Shawn Anna Smyth, Rebecca West, Leo Wolstenholme, Hazel Wolstenholme, Rhian Wolstenholme, Vita YaskozhukZoe Shields (Independent artist, Dublin)

LATVIA (Curator: Ilze Kupca)

Marta Viktorija Agruma, Lidija Zaneripa, Gints Zilbalodis

PORTUGAL (Curator: Ana Maria Franco Barbero)

Ana Patricia Goncalves, Edna Loureiro, Leia Rego

SLOVENIA (Curator/ Mentor: Prof. Mateja Ocepek & Prof. Nina Osten)

Tia Čiček, Polona Drobnič, Marja Javornik, Anja Kapus, Asja Kunaver, Neža Prelog, Urška Savič, Dora Trček