Meet the artist
Siobhán McDonald is an Irish artist based in Dublin. Her practice draws attention to contemporary topics dealing with air, breath and atmospheric phenomena, weaving scientific knowledge into her art in a poetic and thoughtful manner, emphasising field work and collaboration she works with natural materials, withdrawing them from their cycles of generation, growth and decay. This process gives form to a range of projects which consider our place on Earth in the context of geological time. Her work with glaciers and other natural phenomena deploys a unique artistic language that gives form to intangible and richly varied processes including painting, drawing, film and sound.
SciArt collaboration at JRC
The scope of her residency centres on the early development of a new body of work that builds on her ongoing research with Thomas Kemper, while opening outwards to new interdisciplinary exchanges with the JRC. The project focuses on water ecosystems — rivers, canals, coastal zones, and seas — and explores how scientific, cultural, and historical forms of knowledge intersect around water bodies. She is particularly keen to establish new conversations with researchers working with water systems, oceans, and environmental data, and intends to connect JRC scientists working across sea and water systems, the Mediterranean, wetlands, soil, and related ecologies into this expanding dialogue.
At Camargo, she will be presenting this project in its formative stages as part of the Mondes Marins programme. Her contribution will include talks, screenings, workshops, and the sharing of works in progress, allowing space for discussion, learning, feedback, and cross-disciplinary exchange with the other resident artists and researchers. The emphasis will be on process, dialogue, and the testing of ideas rather than finished outcomes.
The Mondes Marins programme's focus on artistic practices that engage with oceanic representations and knowledge-production processes resonates deeply with her work. Her research into submerged and often overlooked water ecologies in Ireland, and their connection to broader global systems, aligns closely with the programme's aim to foster epistemological encounters across artistic, scientific, and cultural fields. She sees the residency as a genuinely exciting opportunity and a strong moment to build meaningful exchange between her JRC research and artistic inquiry, contributing to the collective exploration of the social and ecological dimensions of water.