David McGovern

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David McGovern

David McGovern

Emerging Producer

David McGovern is an interdisciplinary artist and producer with a socially engaged practice.

He works with moving image, audio, performance and text to create space for self-enquiry, reflection and speculation. He is passionate in exploring what is common in our experiences, even if that commonality is ambiguous and niche. Themes in his work include masculinity, memory, being stuck, care, and queer identity. His background in futurism informs work that strives to reimagine what’s ahead of us.

Dialogue and provocation are central to his work. He is interested in what is hidden and why we hide it. David shows work outside of gallery spaces to nurture conversation and foster more relaxed environments. These spaces have included a former kimono shop in Japan, a cocktail bar in London, and an opticians in Dublin.

David is currently developing new work entitled ‘HARD CARE’. This participatory artwork explores unconventional experiences of care, working towards crip, queer and feminist futures for medical and self-care. In 2021, David began working on What Does He Need?, a long-term project by artist Fiona Whelan, theatre company Brokentalkers and Rialto Youth Project, exploring how men and boys are shaped by and influence the world they live in. In 2022, he received the Create Artist in the Community R&D Award to work with Shoutout. Later in 2022, David was awarded the Next Generation Artist Award by the Arts Council. He is a proud member of A4 Sounds artist studio.


CORRUPTING CARE, a live show by David McGovern programmed in Dublin Fringe Festival 2022, aims to disrupt and expand how we view both medical care and self-care. It celebrates the role of the internet in creating niche communities of care. Four performers, including Croí Glan’s Linda Fearon, will share their bold, alternative care acts through spoken word, film, dance and sound design. The stories bring speculation, imagination and dark humour to the world of care.

Informed by 60+ hours of testimony, the show stages lived experiences of the resilience and imagination of queer, disabled, sex work and many ‘othered’ voices in caring for themselves. The show will upend perceptions of care, moving away from infantilisation and towards self-determination