TULCA Festival of Visual Arts: The Salvage Agency, curated by Michele Horrigan, kicks off this Friday, and runs until November 17, with exhibitions, talks and other events taking place in spaces all around the city.

More than 26 Irish and international artists are taking part in the 22nd annual TULCA, where the curator’s aim is to offer “unique insights into the vibrant intersection of art, ecology, environmentalism and activism”.

New venues this year including the University of Galway’s Zoology and Marine Biology Museum and the James Mitchell Geology Museum, alongside historic buildings like the Hall of the Red Earl on Druid Lane.

The main Festival Gallery will be at the Printworks on Market Street, where the official launch will take place this Friday, November 1, at 7pm. That event will also include the launch of the festival’s companion publication, The Salvage Agency.

This booklet considers the role of art in contemporary ecology and environmental action. According to Michele, Galway’s coastal location, on the north-eastern Atlantic, creates a greater awareness of what’s at stake.

Highlights this year will include The TULCA Assembly on Saturday, November 9, in the PorterShed on Market Street. This gathering of critical voices from Ireland, mainland Europe and the US aims to explore how art and ecological issues can feed into each other. It’s on from 12pm to 5pm.

On November 16, the Pálás Cinema will screen short films by renowned artists including Joan Jonas and Patrick Hough in an event that runs from 2pm to 4pm.

And there’s a live show this Saturday when Birmingham-born artist Stuart Whipps will present a unique performance, The Leviathan of Parsontown, inspired by the vast collection of rock, mineral and fossil specimens in the James Mitchell Geology Museum at UG. That’s on from 4pm to 5pm at the university quadrangle.

Audiences can also join an interactive bus performance, Beyond Survival School Bus by Léann Herlihy. That free 90-minute event is also on this Saturday, from 1pm to 3pm, with the pick-up and drop-off points point being at Gaol Road, by the Cathedral.

Throughout the festival, there be walking tours, gallery tours and artist talks for adults and younger audiences, focusing on art, the environment, social history, and nature.

These include a tour of the medieval Hall of the Red Earl on November 9, from 11am to 12pm, being given by local historian William Henry.

The 2024 programme will feature new commissions, artistic contributions and exhibitions by: Seanie Barron, David Beattie, Stephen Brandes, John Carson, Ruth Clinton and Niamh Moriarty, Michelle Doyle and Cóilín O’Connell, Bryony Dunne, Peter Fend and Finn Van Gelderen, Regina José Galindo, Léann Herlihy, Michael Holly, Patrick Hough, Joan Jonas, Catriona Leahy, Julie Morrissy, Áine Phillips, Jorge Satorre, Niamh Schmidtke, Temporary Services / Half Letter Press / Breakdown Break Down Press / Public Collectors, Lily Van Oost and Stuart Whipps.

For more information on all events during TULCA 2024, go to www.tulca.ie.

Pictured: Birmingham artist Stuart Whipps will present a unique performance, The Leviathan of Parsontown, inspired by the James Mitchell Geology Museum at UG.