Join us for a panel discussion on Lesbian and Queer Activism with invited key activists from the last five decades followed by an interactive audience Long-table. Chaired by LGBTQ+ campaigner Ailbhe Smyth, the panel will include Suzy Byrne, Renn Miano, Dr Ger Moane, Sara Phillips, and Niamh Grennan. Curated and produced by Han Tiernan and Francis Fay.

The Long-table is an open-source public engagement format developed by artist Lois Weaver (Split Britches) as part of a series of projects titled Public Address Systems. Conceived in 2003 by Lois Weaver in response to the divided nature of conventional panel discussions, the Long Table allows voices to be heard equally, disrupting hierarchical notions of ‘expertise.’ It was inspired by Maureen Gorris’s film Antonia’s Line, the central image of which is a dinner table getting longer and longer to accommodate a growing family of outsiders, eccentrics and friends.

This event will also be livestreamed via Bealtaine Festival YouTube.

Unshrinking Violets is the Age & Opportunity, Bealtaine Festival Commission for 2023 supported by the Arts Council and Dublin City Council. Curated & produced by artists Han Tiernan & Francis Fay with exhibition research advisors, filmmaker Cara Holmes and Dr Ger Moane. Curatorial Support Monica Flynn (Visual Art Curator, Bealtaine Festival).

Unshrinking Violets encompasses: a dedicated exhibition with activist/ protest ephemera and photographs, donated by participants from this era, exploring the archival and social history of Lesbian activism; a film screening of Outitude (2018), directed by Sonya Mulligan and produced by Ger Moane and; a panel discussion on Lesbian and Queer Activism with invited key activists from the last five decades followed by an interactive audience long table.