Three Columbus College of Art & Design (CCAD) colleagues will fill the Dublin Arts Council's galleries with work tackling climate change, artificial intelligence and migration when "Constructed Worlds" opens Sept. 12.
Curator Nick Stull selected artists Elham Bayati, Katie Davis and Morgan Rose Free for the exhibition, which runs through Oct. 29 at the council's Riverside Drive building.
Admission and parking are free.
Stull, who collaborates with the Dublin Arts Council as curator and preparator, told Columbus Underground in a Sept. 10 interview he chose the trio because their pieces pull viewers in two directions at once. "I was drawn to these three artists because their work asks the viewer to reconcile seemingly opposing forces: visual seduction and critical engagement," he said.
Each artist brings a distinct lens. Bayati's work engages with migration, cultural history and the rewriting of collective memory. Davis addresses AI, algorithms and what Stull described as detached human connection. Free's pieces reference climate change. All three build from everyday materials, stitching and layering fragments into larger compositions.
Rather than giving each artist a separate room, Stull said he mixed the works throughout the gallery to create dialogue between individual pieces. Some installations will be site-specific, responding to the building's interior architecture and surrounding landscape.
The Dublin Arts Council occupies a former family estate at 7125 Riverside Drive. Stull described the space as retaining its original French-Eclectic style, a quality he said complements the artists' use of domestic patterning and interior textures. He characterized the show's visual appeal through "vibrant color combinations, rich textures and tactile experiences, floral and domestic patterning, and the use of everyday materials."
An opening reception runs from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 12, with a chance to meet the artists and light refreshments, according to the Columbus Makes Art event listing.
Regular gallery hours are Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and every second Saturday of the month, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Upcoming Dublin community events:
- Saturday, Sept. 12: "Constructed Worlds" opening reception, 11 a.m.–2 p.m., Dublin Arts Council, 7125 Riverside Drive. Free.
