Burren College of Art (BCA) is delighted to partner with the University of Galway Gallery to present New Research. Part of the gallery programme for Project RARE: Real Art and Research for Everyone and running in conjunction with the Society for Artistic Research (SAR) International Forum on Artistic Research the exhibition features the work of BCA research students Lea Farrell, Nicole Monahan and JD Whitman.

Working through investigations of landscape, marine conservation and artificial intelligence this exhibition provides an introduction to differing forms of artistic enquiry. The exhibition runs in partnership with the SAR International Forum on Artistic Research, hosted by the University of Galway, which explores the intersection between diverse forms of artistic research and the social, cultural and political contexts in which it operates.

Practice based research is integral to the academic programme at Burren College of Art. The College’s MPhil and PhD programmes are accredited by University of Galway and represent a plurality of approaches to contemporary artistic praxis.  Located in the heart of the protected karst limestone landscape of the Burren, research at BCA is international, interdisciplinary and informed by collaboration across multiple fields. BCA extends a special thank you to gallery curator Jane Conway for support of this exhibition, and to Project Rare, the Society for Artistic Research and University of Galway.

Lea Farrell

Lea Farrell is a PhD student at Burren College of Art.  She holds a Diploma in Fine Art Painting Techniques and a BA (Hons) in Animation. Her work experiments with drawing, installations and video, with gesture drawing and expressive, motion-driven mark-making forming the structural core of her practice. Through large-scale, process-driven works, Lea examines domestic life as a site of repetition and care amid growing digital stimuli. Combining theoretical research with studio practice, her work explores domestic routine and care as affective and temporal conditions in dialogue with the growing omnipresence of Artificial Intelligence. Drawing on philosophy, psychology, cultural theory, and critical technology studies, her research investigates how AI and digital systems reshape intimacy, family life, and lived experience within the contemporary home.

https://leafarrell.squarespace.com/about

Nicole Monahan

Nicole Monahan is an MPhil student at Burren College of Art researching how land and humans may exchange small bits of perceptual information that could be made visible through a co-created pattern language. Monahan earned her MFA in Sculpture from The Ohio State University. She has shown nationally and internationally and served as an artist-in-residence in the US, Japan, and Ireland. Her extensive professional background includes teaching, leading experiential learning partnerships and career services, managing large-scale artist productions, developing curatorial projects, and directing educational media strategy. Monahan is also a fellow of the US-Japan Leadership Program.

https://www.nicolemonahanart.com/

JD Whitman

Jacquelyn Dale (JD) Whitman is an installation artist, educator, and ocean advocate whose transdisciplinary research addresses the plastic pollution crisis at the intersection of marine science, policy, and creative practice. Her work employs eco-social art methodologies to translate complex scientific research into immersive, accessible experiences that raise awareness, empower communities, and foster sustainable action. Focusing on micro- and nanoplastics, ocean literacy, and eco-emotional resilience, she is a PhD candidate at the University of Galway and Burren College of Art and serves as Artist-in-Residence at Atlantic Technological University. She is also an active alumna of the JRC’s SciArt Project, University of Iowa, and University of Chicago.

https://www.jdwhitman.com/