TU Dublin GradX 2025
TU Dublin's Schools of Art and Design, Media, Conservatoire and Mechanical Engineering present GradX 2025, the annual exhibition showcasing graduate work to the public. Opening in East Quad, Grangegorman, on Thursday, May 29 at 6pm, GradX runs until June 5.
Around 300 students will exhibit a diverse range of projects and artefacts spanning the creative arts and media, while engaging with and offering and practical solutions to real world issues.
Among the exhibitions are Ekko, a tactile musical communication tool designed by Product Design graduate Christopher Gilmer, designed to support children with autism in expressing emotions and developing verbal skills. Oisín Hills’ MiachAid is an Adjustable Prosthetic designed for conflict zones and low-resource settings where children rapidly outgrow their prosthetics. MiachAid is an adjustable solution for children aged 10-15 that grows with the child, reducing the need for complete refitting, which is typically required every 6 to 12 months.
Nicole Preece’s work, The History Book, is a typographic publication that centres on the Irish Famine, drawing parallels between colonial-era propaganda and present-day misinformation. Taking the example of the dehumanisation of the Irish as inferior beings and the resemblance it bears to the language used against Palestinians today, and the ongoing Irish homelessness crisis. Visual Communication Design graduate Jessica Arkins’ project, Built to Fall is a visual and narrative exploration of environmental degradation in Portrane and Donabate. The project documents the irreversible changes caused by human impact, from disappearing shorelines and ecosystems to displaced communities.
Head of the School of Art and Design, John Walsh, said: ‘The diversity and breadth of work on display at this year’s exhibition is remarkable. In particular, we see students responding to societal issues both artistically and through practical interventions that aim to improve the lived experiences and quality of life of others, and provoke both thought and action. The show is testimony to the students’ qualities as global citizens, and we continue to be inspired by their energy and societal awareness.’
The GradX identity, created by Visual Communication students Niamh Fanning, Angie Hogan, Lenny Sanches and Adam Doran, was inspired by using folds to make a simple page into something spatial and three-dimensional. This is manifested across a range of dynamic imagery and typography in print and digital forms, and into live and performative elements threaded throughout the campus building.
Visit the GradX to find out more.