This month sees Kevin Kavanagh present ‘Urban Myth’, a group exhibition of photography by gallery and invited artists. These artists demonstrate the changing role of photographs in our digital world. No longer just records of the real or of a moment in time, they have become the basis of our modern folklore. Where once we gathered round the fire to share stories, now we pass images from screen to screen. For all the solidity of the phone in our hand, these images flow by in a turbulent stream.
As urban myths, this folklore permeates every aspect of our daily lives. They are an articulation of our fears and insecurities, an attempt to put order on an increasingly chaotic world, and a measure of the society we think we live in. As short videos and memes, they are the driving force behind much social media. Increasingly, they dictate the direction of populist politics and of society itself.
In ‘Urban Myth’ the photographers become storytellers. The stories they tell grapple with the underlying drivers of our new digital urban lives. They reflect our desires and our fears in a world of isolated individuals cut off from their natural roots and struggling with the unknown.
As information becomes less reliable, the perceived unknown becomes more threatening. There may be monsters here, but what are they?…
Extract from an accompanying text written by Martin Shiels.
Urban Myth opens at Kevin Kavanagh Gallery on Thursday 8th January from 6pm, featuring work from artists:
Michael Boran | Elaine Byrne | Gary Coyle | Dragana Jurišić | Sean Lynch | Scott Nokia | Adrian O’Carroll | Izabela Szczutkowska
The exhibition runs from 8th January – 7th February 2026. The gallery is open from Tuesday to Saturday 11am – 5pm
