Public Art

The Folly (2008) by Jo Anne Butler was commissioned as part of Transitopia, a contemporary public art initiative that invited artists to explore the changing built environment and evolving identity of Naas. The project responded to a period of rapid growth and transformation within the town, using site-specific artistic interventions to encourage new ways of experiencing familiar places. Transitopia brought together six artists who were commissioned to make new site-specific artwork in response to Naas and its changing form and identity. Four of these artists Michelle Browne, Jo Anne Butler, Elaine Reylnolds and Dominic Thorpe activated their artworks in the town during August 21st -24th 2008, while artists Dara McGrath and Carl Giffney undertook research in relation to the Transitopia project with a view to disseminating their work through the Transitopia publication which was launched in December 2008. Transitopia also commissioned a visual/textual piece by artist SarahBrowne for the print publication and a live improvised piano piece by musician Justin Carroll to accompany a silent cinema event. Jo Anne Butler’s contribution was a witty intervention into the Naas Civic Garden. Her scale model housing estate set up a deliberate tension with the oblique lines of the celebrated Áras buildings that was at once both playful and inquisitive.