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Northern Rhythm: The Art of John Luke (1906-1975)

This book was published in conjunction with the exhibition, also entitled Northern Rhythm: The Art of John Luke (1906-1975), held the Ulster Museum in Belfast, Northern Ireland (2 November 2012 to 28 April 2013). In 2010, McBrinn was commissioned by the National Museums Northern Ireland to curate the exhibition and author the accompanying publication. The book contains a 20,000 word essay and a detailed catalogue of the 85 individual objects by the renowned Belfast artist John Luke, which include paintings, drawings, watercolours, sculpture, designs for murals, lino and woodcut prints, and paper ephemera, in the exhibition. McBrinn received several grants to research and publish this project including an Irish Research Council for the Humanities and Social Sciences grant (€37.5K) and an Esmé Mitchell Trust award (ST£3K). This book complements two essays (7,000 words each) that he wrote on Northern Irish craft for peer-reviewed, edited volumes; Craft, Space and Interior Design, 1855-2005 (Ashgate, 2008) and Material Cultures, 1740-1920: The Meanings and Pleasures of Collecting (Ashgate, 2009). Informed by a variety of methodological approaches, McBrinn's text aimed to reveal how craft impacts upon identity in historic, and contemporary, Northern Ireland. The appeal, and significance, of his book and exhibition lie in the reconsideration of events and developments in Northern Ireland’s cultural history in their wider national and international contexts. The exhibition and publication were supported by a series of public events, including film screenings, workshops and poetry readings, in association with BBC Northern Ireland, The John Hewitt Society, Queen’s Film Theatre and in addition wider impact is evidenced through a series of free events hosted by the National Museums Northern Ireland that included drawing, dance and ballet workshops, online 'lectures' by McBrinn and a special event run by a range of community groups from the Belfast Community Circus to the North Belfast ‘Art for All’ project.