Eamon O'Kane with installation in Ireland

The work is called "Working Drawing" and is curated by Alice Lyons and Claire Mc Aree

Exhibition period
Friday 10th February - Saturday 07th April 2012

The work comprises a 30m long black and white painting, situated in a panoramic structure. The painting reflects trees from nearby. The work is not accessible from the outside and can only be seen through viewing lenses. Some of the lenses look into the panoramic painting and others look into models of imaginary installations. The lenses distort the perspective so that the epic painting looks smaller while the models appear oversized, subtly confounding the viewer's expectations of the work.

The panorama invites the viewer to look at the world in a way which is not possible in real life. Using familiar views from our surroundings, O'Kane unites architecture and nature in one structure. The spy-holes transform our perceptions of this reality, which cause the viewer to evaluate and question the world we live in.

The title of the work refers to Joseph Beuys's famous action work, "I Like America and America Likes Me". It explores the idea of modern urban planning and its relationship to commerce. The installation is a hybrid of two phenomena of the 19th century: "The Cyclorama" and "The Kaiser Panorama". It also refers to the work of Victor Gruen, an architect who invented the shopping mall intending it as a utopian space where people could meet and shop. He gradually became disenchanted by his creation as it spread cross America.

"Panorama - I like shopping centres and shopping centres like me" was originally concieved for an exhibition curated by Carissa Farrell at Draiocht Arts centre in Ireland in 2006. To view a PDF of the catalogue click here. The installation was at the Economist Plaza in London in 2008 and at the Centre Culturel Irlandais in Paris in Spring 2009.

The exhibition is part of a major touring exhibition of the artist's work which has been visiting British and international venues.

Links
The Dock

http://www.eamonokane.com/paris.html

http://www.eamonokane.com/tour/london/index.html

http://www.eamonokane.com/pdf_publications/EOK_panorama.pdf