Jesse Jones joins Aosdána

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The Tower (2022) video installation with sculpture, performance and scenography

‘Surely the whole point of a group exhibition is who you leave out?’ a Dublin gallerist recently said to me. A fair point, and one that comes to mind in relation to Aosdána, the organisation whose members are honoured for their contribution to the arts in Ireland.

They meet annually, when new membership vacancies are hotly contested. In November, there was only one new member elected. That honour fell to Jesse Jones, an established, energetic presence on the Irish cultural scene and further afield – she represented Ireland at the 57th Venice Biennale. Jones is a visual artist, working from a feminist perspective, who stretches and transforms the term ‘visual’, working with film, video, installation, sculpture and performance. Her extensively researched, often collaborative projects usually have a historical reach, always with an eye to how past practices and events inform and frame critiques of current social and political structures and mores.

Jones’ election brings the membership to 250. When it was established by Anthony Cronin and Charles Haughey in 1981, the organisation’s cap was 200; it was only enlarged to 250 in 2005. The cnuas (or stipend), available to those whose earnings are under a set income threshold (there are circa 140 members in receipt of it) is currently €20,000 per annum. Aosdána has requested that the earning eligibility limit for the cnuas be raised from under €26,000 to €30,000 to reflect economic reality.

In 1981, membership comprised mostly writers and artists. Today, a small numbers of architects and choreographers have joined the exclusive ranks

The organisation has responded to pressures to widen the scope of eligible arts disciplines. In 1981, membership comprised mostly writers and artists. Today, a small numbers of architects and choreographers have joined the exclusive ranks. The basic rationale is to demonstrate that the contribution of cultural creatives is valued and esteemed. However, the hazy line between production and performance, always debatable (the late jazz musician Louis Stewart was, rightly, a member), is still an issue. Some art forms are inescapably performative. A concerted attempt to address that fact would certainly put pressure on the current cap of 250. Jesse Jones’ election brings the visual-art membership to 110.

Aidan Dunne