New Artists New Works, Orchard Gallery, Derry, 1983.
Outsize catalogues such as this one, a very tall folio measuring 16.5 inches long by 11.75 inches broad, do not tend to survive for long. Ordinary shelves won’t accommodate them, and if they are paperback, they tend to buckle, crease and tear. Their one major advantage is the size of their illustrations.
Produced in 1983, this is an early Orchard Gallery catalogue produced in a format that they never repeated. It showcases the work of eleven Irish artists (from both the North and the Republic) presented in alphabetical order. It is notable for being one of the few catalogues of the period to have an ISBN number. Declan McGonagle, the director of the gallery, was a canny operator, scion of a political family, and well aware of the benefits of the information highway. Although few people came to the gallery, apart from opening nights – Declan was sharp enough to provide a free bus service from Belfast to Derry and back – the director, by means of placing advertisements in all the major art magazines, ensured that everyone know about the exhibitions.
I imagine that the exhibition’s original idea was to present an artist’s statement and short CV first, followed by a number of pages of photographs. In the event it appears that only three artists supplied statements, and that Micky Donnelly was the only one to provide a CV.
(l-r) Archive photo of Orchard Gallery in late 1970s; front cover of catalogue; artist list from catalogue
As a result, to anyone who does not know the work of the artists concerned, the catalogue must look odd. You turn over the pages but, in most cases, you are not told the name of the artist, so you have to turn to the Index page to find out who did what. Scrappy, to say the least.
However, if a lifetime of working in the visual arts arena has taught me nothing else, it has taught me that until recently, Irish artists, and Northern Irish ones in particular, often lacked the skills and knowledge to professionally document their own work. As a result, not only is basic catalogue information often missing, but much of their work, especially early work, has often vanished.
So, the value of this catalogue is that, in large format photographs in black-and-white, it documents some of the early work of the following artists:
Arny Austin
Julie Stephenson
Unfortunately, it does not give us basic information such as media, sizes, or dates, but then again that is true of most catalogues of the period.
One nice touch is that the Lynne Davies Jones entry – she is one of only three artists to date her work – is a decorative cruciform shape collaged onto the page, and it appears to be an original watercolour. A note to the index states that it is one of three hundred similar watercolours.
So, if you want to see early work by any of these artists, this is a good catalogue to peruse. Mind you, I have never seen another copy…
Brian McAvera, February 2026
A copy of this Orchard Gallery catalogue is available in the NI Visual Art Research Library & Archive at the Golden Thread Gallery. NIVARLA items in the rare and special collection will be available to view by appointment. We will share more information on how to access and use NIVARLA soon!
The Northern Ireland Visual Art Research Library & Archive is supported by the Ampersand Foundation, with many books and archive items donated and on loan from the McAvera & Walker Library.
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