Line Of Duty star Adrian Dunbar has given a rare poetry and art book to the Seamus Heaney Centre at Queen’s University, Belfast.
Happenstance was created by the painter Brian Ballard and poet and writer Ciaran Carson, the late founder and former director of the centre.
Conceived in 2012, the book combines the artistry of Carson and Ballard with the traditional craftsmanship of letterpress printing, screen printing and bookbinding.
It was published in 2013 in a limited edition of just 30 copies.
Actor Dunbar donated the book to the Seamus Heaney Centre at an event on Thursday evening with readings and traditional music. Painter Ballard and members of the Carson family were in attendance.
The book will be displayed in the centre’s public exhibition area which tells the story of writing at Queen’s and the creative outcomes of friendships between poets and artists.
Dunbar said: “In my eyes, art is about connections between things.
“By bringing the book Happenstance into being we connected painting and writing with wonderful printing skills.
“This created a completely new piece of art with its own existence and its own voice.”
Dr Patricia Malone and Dr Anna Cummins, collections managers at the Seamus Heaney Centre said: “The collections team at the Seamus Heaney Centre are thrilled to receive this copy of Happenstance, a piece of work that celebrates the tactility of text and the serendipity of collaborative creation: things that happen, as our former centre director Ciaran Carson said, ‘on the hoof, because you happen to be there’.
“A welcome addition to our extant holdings, which include Ciaran’s working library and the Seamus Heaney Broadcast Archive, Happenstance is received with gratitude and wonder – and our usual invitation to the public to come see for yourself.”
Michael O’Neill, creative director at Armchair & Rocket who published the book, said: “Happenstance is really a celebration of art.
“The work of both Brian Ballard and Ciaran Carson is a supreme example of how art is a kind of meditation on the deep complexity of life.”
The public exhibition area at the centre is open to visitors Tuesday-Sunday, 10am-4pm.
