DLR River and Coast Arts Commission 2026-2027, Ireland

The Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown River and Coast Arts Commission 2026-2027 invites professional artists to create temporary, public-facing artworks responding to the Shanganagh River and Shankill coastal environment in Ireland. Led by the Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council Arts Office, the commission supports site-responsive works that engage directly with environmental change along rivers and coastal landscapes.

The programme focuses on climate change, flooding, biodiversity loss, and coastal resilience through collaborative, research-informed, and community-engaged artistic practice. Key objectives include exploring climate change impacts on river and coastal systems, increasing public awareness of flooding, erosion, and sea-level rise, supporting biodiversity restoration, and strengthening community engagement with local environments. Primary sites include the Lower Shanganagh River, its floodplain, the Shankill shoreline, and the Shanganagh Park area.

The commission supports temporary, non-permanent public artworks. Preferred formats include audio-based works, sound walks, field recordings, podcasts, and lens-based media such as film, video, and documentary approaches. The emphasis is on listening, observation, and real environments, with strong site responsiveness and low-impact installation. Work should be non-performative or non-scripted in narrative.

Artists are expected to integrate scientific and community knowledge, collaborating with ecologists, biodiversity experts, water quality specialists, and coastal and climate scientists, and to translate scientific concepts into accessible public-facing experiences. The commission offers a 20,000 euro budget to support projects delivered between November 2026 and September 2027.