Blackwater Publishing, in collaboration with Sample-Studios, one of Ireland’s largest artist studios and creative workspaces, is delighted to invite submissions to a new book, Digital Art in Ireland: Theory, Practice, Futures.

This publication follows Digital Art in Ireland: Reflections & Visuals and will extend the conversation by bringing together artworks, practitioner insights, and critical essays that explore the state of digital art in Ireland today and where it is heading.

The book will document current practice, examine emerging methods and technologies, and contribute to national conversations around digital culture, artistic innovation, and the future of digital arts practice on this island. As a print publication, it will serve both as a record of contemporary work and a resource for artists, researchers, and cultural institutions engaging with digital arts practice in an Irish context Ireland.

Scope

For the purposes of this volume, digital art is understood broadly: any artistic work or practice that uses and addresses digital or media technologies, computation, or digitally mediated processes as part of its creation, execution, or presentation. Contributors whose work or research is developed in and/or connected to Ireland—through practice, context, or thematic engagement—are welcome to submit.

The editors welcome two forms of contribution:

Artist Contributions

Artists are invited to submit high-quality images or other documentary material that clearly represents a significant digital artwork or series. High-quality, professionally documented visuals are essential, as selected works will be reproduced in print. Contributions should be accompanied by a concise contextual statement or reflection on process (accessible to a general audience) that explains the work’s aims, methods, and significance.

Critical Essays (1,500 – 5,000 words)

Researchers and practitioners are invited to submit accessible essays or reflections that explore digital art in Ireland. Submissions should speak to a broad readership, offering clear and engaging perspectives on themes such as digital aesthetics, the history of Irish digital art, studies of individual artists, artistic processes, creative technologies, AI and computation, immersive media, digital labour, archiving and preservation, the future of digital practice, sectoral challenges and opportunities.

Examples of strong artist contributions and critical essays can be found in Digital Art in Ireland: Reflections & Visuals (O’Sullivan & McCarthy 2023) and Digital Art in Ireland: New Media and Irish Artistic Practice (O’Sullivan 2021).

References must conform to the Chicago Manual of Style (author date) and should not include footnotes or endnotes.

Deadline

Please send submissions to sroddy@ucc.ie no later than 5pm, on June 30th 2026.

Potential contributors are welcome to get in touch in advance to discuss possible submissions.

About the editors

STEPHEN RODDY is a Composer and Engineer working in Sound and Music Computing (SMC) at the Radical Humanities Lab in the Future Humanities Institute and the Department of Digital Humanities at University College Cork (UCC). He is programme director for the MA in Digital Arts and Humanities at UCC and holds a Ph.D. in sonification: the use of sound to perceptualise data and convey information, from Trinity College Dublin (TCD). Stephen’s research blends methods from engineering design with music composition and performance to explore the application of sonification techniques, generative systems, and network technologies, in sound and music computing contexts.

AOIBHIE MCCARTHY is an arts manager, curator and arts educator and, since 2020, Artistic Director of Sample-Studios, one of Ireland’s largest artist studios. She holds a B.A in Art History, Architectural History and English Literature from Trinity College Dublin and an M.A in Curatorial Studies from Limerick School of Art and Design, through the Shinnors Curatorial Scholarship. From 2016-2018, she was Visual Arts and Outreach Manager in Garter Lane Arts Centre before becoming Marketing and Development Manager of Cork International Film Festival and Business to Arts Fundraising Fellow until 2020. She is an assessment panelist for Culture Ireland, Create Ireland and Limerick City and County Council. She is on the Board of Uillinn West Cork Arts Centre and Waterford Youth Arts. 

EMER YIP is an arts manager, curator, and research manager based in Cork city, with over 25 years’ experience in arts administration and creative production. In 2001 Emer co-founded an artist collective and cultural venue in San Francisco which specialised in platforming experimental electronic music and nascent digital art practitioners. She is a graduate of the Bay Area Video Coalition's Tech SF scholarship programme in multimedia. She has worked with many of Ireland’s leading cultural organisations including, Cork International Film Festival, Cork Midsummer Festival, Corcadorca, Sounds From a Safe Harbour and Sample-Studios where she served as Acting Artistic Director in 2022/23.  In 2021, she was awarded an Arts Council of Ireland Agility Award for Visual Art for photography. Emer holds a BA in English & Archaeology from the University of Galway, a H. Dip. in Computer Science and Postgraduate Diploma in Project Management from UCC, and is currently a member of the UCC’s Department of Digital Humanities where she manages a Horizon Europe MSCA doctoral network, a partnership between UCC, the University of Sheffield, KU Leuven, Saarland University, and the University of Helsinki. She is a board member at Sample-Studios.