An Ciúnas / The Silence

Marianne Keating is a London-based Irish artist whose practice examines intersecting and overlooked narratives of Irish emigration—initially through indentured labour—to the Caribbean, particularly Jamaica, where the Irish were recruited as a new labour force after the abolition of enslavement. and the broader legacies of British imperialism in Ireland, Jamaica, and beyond. Keating’s film installations combine a range of archival materials, found footage, newly shot footage, text, and sound.

An Ciúnas / The Silence traces multiple trajectories of migration from Ireland to both Jamaica and Britain from the period preceding the Great Famine of 1845–52 to the present day. It identifies catalytic moments in the history of the British Empire through the lenses of Ireland and Jamaica to illuminate how events from the past inform current politics and society. The work establishes a radical account of Ireland’s and Jamaica’s fights for self-determination, the social conditions of Ireland in the nineteenth century and today, the evolution of the Jamaican political system, and the power structures at play in both countries before and after independence.

An Ciúnas / The Silence is presented as a multichannel film installation and collages a myriad of moving and still images (often manipulated), either drawn from or referencing public records, online videos and photographs, and newspaper articles. The montage of fragmentary episodes moves back and forth in time and incorporates various creative modes, including textual graphics and audio effects. The overlaying of information, visuals, and sonic outputs amplifies the depicted perspectives, and the work’s installation as a continuous loop undermines typical storytelling and the notion of a single official, dominant narrative.

This exhibition is organised in collaboration with Sirius Arts Centre, Cobh, Co. Cork, as part of a tour that also includes The Model in Sligo, Limerick City Gallery of Art and Wexford Arts Centre. It was initially presented at The Showroom in London. The production of An Ciúnas / The Silence and its tour are funded by the Arts Council.

Main image: Marianne Keating, An Ciúnas / The Silence, 2023. Installation view, The Showroom. Photograph: Dan Weill