Visual artist Marie Brett  (E.gress, Torpedo, Amulet) and chorographer/dance artist Philip Connaughton (Assisted Solo, Mamafesta Memorialising, Extraterrestrial Events) are making a new collaborative, cross-medium art piece exploring how issues of capacity, autonomy and dementia care-giving are raising dilemmas amid Ireland’s new capacity legislation.

Public viewing of this dance work-in-progress will be available intermittently at The People’s Pavilion.

Both artists have already accomplished strikingly poignant earlier works that express the essence of life’s fragility in relation to dementia and brain disease. They originally met at IMMA when Brett was exhibiting and touring E.gress and Connaughton created a dance response to the piece. Brett then attended a Law Society human rights event, sparking her interest in Ireland’s new capacity legislation and it’s potential affect for dementia carers; and went on to research the area while an IMMA artist in residence . Meanwhile Connaughton created Assisted Solo  and Mamafesta Memorialising.

Now, through this new collaboration informed by an extensive participatory project with members of the Dementia Carers Campaign Network and contextual advisors in law; they are combining the mediums of dance theatre, film and spoken word to make a new art piece.

This work is supported by The Arts Council, CREATE, IMMA, The Alzheimer Society of Ireland, Dublin City Council and Dublin Dance Festival, with thanks to advisory panel members, Axis: Ballymun and Poetry Ireland.

The final body of work will be presented by IMMA at a later date during this winter period.