Alan Counihan Visual Artist

The work of Alan Counihan

“OPEN HOUSE”. 2008.

Published on October 20, 2009

Commissioned as part of the New Sites-New Fields Landscape Research Project at the Leitrim Sculpture Centre, Manorhamilton, Co Leitrim.

This work centred upon an examination of the idea of place as expressed through vernacular traditions and explored the web of relationships that are revealed through human habitation patterns and landscape. The focus of the work was primarily on the traditional vernacular house form and its surrounds as area of settlement, shelter, home, and realm of dream. It explored the relevance of such houses within the contemporary landscape.

The landscape intervention took place in Teach Sheáin Mhic Dhiarmada, a National Monument in the care of the Office of Public Works and the birthplace of Seán Mac Diarmada, one of the signatories of the 1916 Proclamation who was executed during that revolutionary struggle.  Its custodians describe this classic vernacular cottage as a “national shrine” less for its political legacy than for its architectural expression of life in rural Ireland from the late19th to mid 20th century and of a harmonious relationship to its environment.
The patterns of the surrounding fields seem to have shaped the patterns and customs of life within the house and the internal lives of its occupants.  The inner and outer worlds must have been deeply entwined. To express this symbiosis, maps of the surrounding townland were drawn on the bed linen of the house. On what  might have  been young Seán Mac Diarmada’s pillow was drawn a map of a wider world.
In Corranmore , Laghty Barr, there now stand seven houses where stood thirty not long ago; a thriving community stitched together by custom and shared values. One of these customs was “rambling”. By night the young would ramble to “céilí” in the cottage of their choice. Those with a radio were particularly prized but all doors were open. To awaken a memory of this sense of community and celebration of shared experience  a gathering was organized within the house with the aim of reinvigorating the place and allowing it to be experienced as a living building
The theme of openness – to environment and community- was echoed in the gallery installation. Here a house form was deconstructed and its relationship to its environment left exposed. This work explored a different sense of openness, one created through abandonment. There was no adequate shelter in its past. It might be Teach Mhic Diarmada , the hero’s house, as ruin.
Neither installation was an exercise in nostalgia but sought to posit a question as to our fundamental relationship to our surroundings and histories. The traditional house form as a vibrant expression of a people’s relationship to landscape has effectively vanished and with it a whole series of cultural relationships. Does this same disappearance reflect a widespread dissociation from the natural world, from the historical secrets of local landscapes, of the inner life from the outer world?  How is that dissociation expressed and what might its cultural consequences be?Related: did wendell edwards leave abc3340, 1928 victrola phonograph, lucchese boots clearance, scholastic vocabulary pdf, grizzly peak disneyland, is diarrhea a sign of miscarriage, alex makim australia, the sanatorium character list, matisse exhibition 2022, chase bank medallion signature guarantee locations near me, 1939 studebaker champion for sale, how many brothers and sisters did michael jackson have, wedding vows examples for her, tracy carroll wmji fired, how many grams in a 20 sack of reggie,Related: mount washington temperature records, blue cross blue shield of illinois ppo fertility coverage, christopher walken angelina jolie, melania trump 2021 photos, cause de la mort de franck fernandel, is fragrant cloud honeysuckle invasive, dr hsu goals plastic surgery, lemieux mini headcollar, stephen vincent flacco, horse isle 2, types of cheque crossing, how to organize your thoughts for better communication, what nationality is finau, turkey club sandwich nutrition, college of charleston soccer camp 2022,Related: state street leadership, famous softball players jersey numbers, cheer captain responsibilities, mail tray for jeep wrangler, google calendar not syncing with cozi, did sarah kaynee and dangmattsmith break up, cz 85 slide stop, lds temple endowment schedule, how is hyde presented as violent, is it legal to kill foxes in georgia, the land of shadow forbidden territory cast, loud house villains wiki, riomar country club membership cost, diplomatic cash delivery, the great gatsby literary devices quizlet,Related: 175 east 68th street new york ny, docker registry mirror authentication, christy nockels church franklin, tn, greg was paid his 5 dollars after he, whitney cummings podcast benton, how do i access my master strawman account, portugal to madeira ferry, examples of community counseling, the mayonnaise jar and two cups of coffee summary, rohr park farmers market, how to get transcripts from a closed college in texas, warzone unban service, employment law conference 2022, teaching squirt hockey positioning, grupos telegram series,Related: bloomfield college application fee waiver, lana turner cause of death, del friscos grille nutrition information, illinois campaign sign regulation act of 2012, metal working classes los angeles, john f kennedy favorite color, scott duxbury watford wife, boston psychedelic research group, top thrill dragster death 2021, pros and cons of force theory, weird laws in haiti, mary peate actress, indoor monkey bars, whispering hills homes for sale, pacific t shirts made in haiti,Related: cherokee county election candidates, is there a layer of spiders in the atmosphere, enhanced advanced heroquest, sarah lindsay wedding, what happened to aileen wuornos son, north carolina adderall laws, joe klecko bench press, robert eggers nosferatu script, churchill fulshear high school band, michael murdock obituary, venice dark chocolate mushroom, church of the subgenius ordained minister, premier health associates andover nj, james knight pulliam, sr, how to pay with venmo on urban outfitters,Related: michael petherick angel strawbridge, crown court sentenced today, exxonmobil training program, el diamante teacher fired, hazel hurdles devon, madame clairevoyant horoscope for today, stephanotis floribunda bunnings, channel 4 news miami anchors, washington state tab renewal grace period 2021, is hometown buffet still in business, south carolina invitational 2022, live oak school district calendar, ridgid r4514 assembly instructions, lugares para visitar en ocala florida, snohomish county lgbtq resources,

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