Modern Irish contributions to the Arts

dttq

What happened here, we used to have some of the best writers in the world such as Joyce, Beckett etc. We had great comedians and stand ups such as Behan. We were also famed for producing some great music which enticed the rest of the world and earned us a great reputation in the musical realm, as within other areas of the Arts. And yet all we seem capable of producing this whether is ****e music/ musicians (e.g. Jedward), and ****e and unfunny comedians, who get regular air-time on RTE, with little to no talent.

We once had great writers, comedians, musicians etc. and yet all we can seem to produce these days is pure unproductive and untalented muck. What ever happened to us when it comes to producing world class men and women within the Arts?

davet82

They all emigrated probably

Jester252

Ireland standards haven't dropped
The world standards have

AnonoBoy

We've still got great artists, writers, comedians and musicians.

You're just looking in the wrong places.

The charts and RTE are not the arbitrators of talent.

SEPT 23 1989

Too much money is the problem

The Master

dttq wrote: »

We had great comedians and stand ups such as Behan.

Behan was a stand up?

DrumSteve

I watched Tommy Tiernan shouting at his audience for a few minutes while imitating a duck and thought to myself, "Is this it?"

The laughter died that day.

AnonoBoy

Nobody can argue that we dont do world class whingers though, eh?

mongdesade

Well if Dublin Contemporary's contribution is anything to go by...not a lot !

http://www.dublincontemporary.com/

davet82

AnonoBoy wrote: »

Nobody can argue that we dont do world class whingers though, eh?

Very true, if only it was an Olympic event :rolleyes:

Colmustard

We won 3 booker prizes and a nobel in the last 10 years. The biggest band in the world is Irish along with Snow patrol who are pretty big as well. We have per head of population a huge number of Hollywood A listers one of which IMO is the best actor I have ever seen (Michael Fashbinder). Quite a number of our modern artists are making quite an impact on modern art. We still have a number of poets. We still have great playwrights Martin O Donahue springs to mind.

OP I really don't know where you are coming from, watch The View and you will learn Irish art and culture is thriving.

Ms.M

The talent is still there, and I would say has even grown.
We still have some of the best poets and writers in the world, they've just been drowned out by popular culture. Prose and verse have always been a little elitist anyway but probably more so in this generation because modern media has overtaken it.
Our equivalent to Behan or Joyce is probably writing a blog somewhere that nobody reads.

Mr Benevolent

Irish comedians aren't that funny and Irish writers write dull books and expect praise just because they're Irish. Irish musicians tend to be quite good though.

woof im a dog

glen hansard won an oscar not too long ago

Richard Hillman

Samantha Mumba was such a talent. I just loved the way she moved her lips in sync with the music. Proper contemporary art

Colmustard

Confab wrote: »

Irish comedians aren't that funny and Irish writers write dull books and expect praise just because they're Irish. Irish musicians tend to be quite good though.

I personally think Dara O Breen (spelling) is the best comic around ATM. As for books, it depends on what you like. If you like the high brow reads we have a load of them, if you like pop lit we have them as well.

With chick lit we export that in the ship load, a personal favourite of mine is the occult-ish Charlie Parker detective novels by John Connolly. Read one I guarantee you will like it.

Colmustard

Richard Hillman wrote: »

Samantha Mumba was such a talent. I just loved the way she moved her lips in sync with the music. Proper contemporary art

what happened to her.

gobnaitolunacy

The Macnas lads with the big heads.

General Relativity

dttq wrote: »

What happened here, we used to have some of the best writers in the world

Seamus Heaney, Maeve Binchy, John Connolly, William Trevor.

We had great comedians and stand ups such as Behan.

Dara O' Briain, Dylan Moran, Jimmy Carr (Has Duel Citzenship)

We were also famed for producing some great music which enticed the rest of the world and earned us a great reputation in the musical realm, as within other areas of the Arts.

No, we're not. Most of our music is cultural, which dosen't speak to the rest of the world. Thin Lizzy, U2 and Rory Gallagher are the only names worth mentioning from a 20 year period of showband hell.

What ever happened to us when it comes to producing world class men and women within the Arts?

We still do. A lot of people don't want to see it though.

Ms.M

Colmustard wrote: »

I personally think Dara O Breen (spelling) is the best comic around ATM.

Dara O'Briain is the smartest comedian I've ever seen. I love him!

AnonoBoy

gobnaitolunacy wrote: »

The Macnas lads with the big heads.

Macnas have come a long way since their big head days.

They're quite dark these days.

Colmustard

Ms.M wrote: »

Dara O'Briain is the smartest comedian I've ever seen. I love him!

Smart is right, his live shows are sometimes very funny lectures, I love him making a stab at the anti sciences religion, new age medicine, psychics etc

I forgot about Dylan Moran he in my eyes has reached legendary status, one of the best comics ever.

alastair

General Relativity wrote: »

Most of our music is cultural, which dosen't speak to the rest of the world. Thin Lizzy, U2 and Rory Gallagher are the only names worth mentioning from a 20 year period of showband hell.

Like it or loath it, Riverdance has been a massive international musical, as well as dance 'phenomenon' .

And (forgive me!) Westlife were as big as they come in terms of international appeal, after a not-so-shabby Boyzone before them. The Corrs on the pop front too. Enya for elevator music.

If rock is your bag - what about MBV, Cranberries, Therapy?, Divine Comedy, Undertones, SLF, Sinead O'Connor etc etc.

AnonoBoy

Colmustard wrote: »

what happened to her.

Accident with a time machine.

4zn76tysfajdxp

woof im a dog wrote: »

glen hansard won an oscar not too long ago

Despite that there are some very talented Irish artists about. Probably.

Irish Guitarist

Gemma Hayes and Damien Rice have made some good music in recent years.

Diapason

Is pop music "the arts" now? I thought that was just so they could claim artists' tax exemption.