Opening Reception Friday 24 April at 6pm

The notion of home is a complex one. It conjures up a range of images, narratives and memories in the mind in an almost whimsical fashion. This sense of the magic of home, fallible memory and the strength of the impression made are all captured by Charles Dickens; ‘Home is a name, a word, it is a strong one; stronger than magician ever spoke, or spirit ever answered to, in the strongest conjuration.’ As Harriet Beecher Stowe described, ‘Home is a place not only of strong affections, but of entire unreserve; it is life’s undress rehearsal, its backroom, its dressing room.’

Home, was the starting point for Sinead Curran in her research as part of her residency in RUA RED in Tallaght. Curran is an artist who is primarily interested in participatory practice, community engagement and sociological issues. Her art is research based and combines both theory and practice. She allows her method to be informed by a period of research or voyage of discovery and she is content at times to meander in thematic terms to suit the needs and interests of her target participants. For Curran, ‘this project came about from a personal interest in the social nature of the home, how stereotypes play out in relation to the facade, how homes engage in social interaction and the role of identity. The home presents itself as a kind of ‘heterotopia,’ in the words of Michel Foucault, existing spaces with more layers of meaning.’ She is investigating the archaeology of home, so to speak. There have been three main drivers in terms of her methodology; social context, community engagement (residents); audience development – a new audience for her exhibition. In this case for ‘I Thought of Home,’ the participants are the residents of Tallaght in County Dublin and Curran has formalised the overall project in line with the residents’ input and interests.