Technologies of Peace

The Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA) is proud to present Technologies of Peace: Art and Transition in Contemporary Europe (1989–2026), a speculative exhibition bringing together researchers, artists, thinkers, and curators from across Europe to critically examine one of the defining challenges of our time: the question of peace. 

At a moment marked by ongoing wars, geopolitical instability, social fragmentation, and the constant circulation of conflict through media and culture, conflict is frequently aestheticised, analysed, and consumed. Peace, by contrast, is rarely afforded the same sustained attention. Yet it is precisely now amid escalating global tensions and deepening uncertainty that the complexity, fragility, and transformative potential of peace is asserted.

Drawing on artistic, political, and social perspectives across Europe, including Greece, Poland, Romania, Spain, Cyprus, Portugal, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, UK, Kosovo, and Croatia, the exhibition considers peace not as a fixed condition or end point, but as an active process of negotiation, maintenance, and collective imagination. Within the context of the island of Ireland’s recent history, the Good Friday Agreement of 1998 offers a powerful example of a landmark manifestation of peace. It is an ongoing process; one that continues to require care, compromise, and vigilance.

The exhibition uses five chapters to examine the outcomes and approaches: Technologies of Peace, Language & Translation, Trauma & Reverberation, Ecology & Architecture, and Imagining Futures. It illustrates how cultural expression can act as a powerful tool for civic repair; and presents a hopeful and constructive counter-narrative, reaffirming Europe’s potential for critical reflection, solidarity, and transformation through the arts. 

Participating artists include: Marina Abramović, Ileana Arnaoutou, Nika Autor, Aleksandar Battista Ilić in collaboration with Ivana Keser and Tomislav Gotovac, Alán Carrasco, Jasmina Cibic, Lana Čmajčanin, Fábio Colaço, Phil Collins, Rita Duffy, Petros Efstathiadis, Andrea, Geyer, Igor Grubić,  Đejmi Hadrović, Petrit Halilaj, Anthony Haughey, Saskia Holmkvist, Sanja Iveković, Dragana Jurišić, Šejla Kamerić, Barbara Knežević, Siniša Labrović, Nicolas Lambouris, Latent Community, Manolis D. Lemos, Goshka Macuga, Emily McFarland, Małgorzata Mirga-Tas, Petros Moris,  Alban Muja, Vlad Nancă, Eleni Odysseos, Claudia Pagès Rabal, Christodoulos Panayiotou, Karol Radziszewski, María Ruido, Edita Schubert, Driton Selmani, Indrė Šerpytytė, Slavs and Tatars, Mladen Stilinović, Bojan Stojčić, Kostis Velonis, Vangelis Vlahos, Mona Vatamanu and Florin Tudor.

The IMMA permanent Collection forms a central part of the exhibition, with key works by Willie Doherty, Frances Hegarty, Sandra Johnston, Alastair MacLennan, Locky Morris, Mairéad McClean, William McKeown, Paul Seawright, Anne Tallentire and Cathy Wilkes. Also included are works by Ursula Burke, Amanda Dunsmore, Glenn Loughran and Petra Matić, participants of the Dwell Here Residency Programme at IMMA. The exhibition includes an outdoor screening programme of film works on Living Canvas at IMMA.

The exhibition forms part of a major five-year research initiative led by IMMA exploring “Technologies of Peace” through exhibitions, artist residencies, symposia, co-commissions, research, and publications between 2025 and 2030. The programme examines the central role artistic practice and cultural experience play in healing societies, fostering reconciliation, and building a shared sense of identity and community. 

The exhibition will be accompanied by a new publication, launching to coincide with an international “Technologies of Peace” symposium taking place from December 3–4, 2026.