‘We salute these men, and thousands like them’

A new collection of artworks exploring the experiences of older gay men living in Ireland has been unveiled in Cork.

The collection, named ‘Before the Rainbow...and After’, saw a group of gay men take part in a 9 week collaborative process with UK artist Mark Storor and creative producer Claire Ryan from Cork.

Commissioned by Gay Project in Cork, the new collection includes a 48 page art publication, collages, photography, and poetic film installation piece.

The collection deals with issues such as ongoing societal homophobia, discrimination, isolation, concerns around HIV, and the fragility of gay rights, as well as issues within the queer community.

The project comes as Ireland prepares to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the decriminalisation of homosexuality next year.

One of its main goals was to create a platform of expression and to provide a voice for a “lost generation” of older gay men who have lived through challenging periods of personal and social change. One of the project’s participants is Will Kennedy, a 65 year old HIV positive gay man and former soldier from Cork. Will has been living with HIV since 2007 and has been a gay rights activist since 1994, since he got sober. Will says he has lived the full gamut of experiences as a gay man in Ireland and has seen society change dramatically in his time.

Commenting on the project’s meaning, Gay Project co-ordinator, Ailsa Spindler, said the term “coming out” is a phrase often heard in the LGBTQI+ world but can mean many, different things.

“Coming out can also involve revealing one’s innermost feelings. This is a process which takes strength, courage and resolve,” said Ailsa.

She continued: “The men who have participated in ‘Before the Rainbow...and After’ have demonstrated their strength, their courage, and their resolve to show how it feels to be an older gay man living in Ireland in 2022.

“The result is a celebration of their lives, which acknowledges the struggles they faced growing up in a society which demonised and vilified them. We salute these men, and thousands like them.”

Artist Mark Storor added: “Primarily, for me, art is about storytelling. Making a piece of work in collaboration with others allows us to look at, to examine, to question the things that maybe we can’t talk about so easily. The men who have been involved in this project have given generously of their time and their stories, some aspects of which were difficult to tell.”