Giving Voice: An Exhibition of Selected Pieces from Mary Robinson's Archive

Giving Voice was the first time Mary’s archive has been publicly exhibited, and took place in Ballina Library in 2015.  It offered an exclusive insight into the life and work of Ireland’s first female President, charting her career championing human rights.  A precious gift of historical material that to helped shape the Ireland we live in today and continues to shape the world, it includes over 500,000 documents, letters, artefacts, books, photographs and much more.

The exhibition shows Mary’s US Presidential Medal of Freedom awarded by President Obama, letters from the Dalai Lama, Bill Clinton and Vaclav Havel, personal memories such as paintings gifted by children during her Presidency and of course the light that stood in the window of Áras an Uachtaráin.  Varvara Shavrova, a Ballycastle based visual artist has created The Tree of Voices, a focal piece for the exhibition, illustrating Mary’s work with the United Nations, The Mary Robinson Foundation - Climate Justice and The Elders among others - the vital role of giving voice to the voiceless, an enduring theme carried from her Presidential election campaign.

This exhibition will tour in advance of The Mary Robinson Centre's opening in 2017.  If you would like to host the exhibition, please email [email protected].