Researching remote islands and renewable resources at the Irish Pavilion at the Venice Biennale
The Irish Pavilion installed a large black mound as an abstraction for Sceilg Mhichíl’s sheep’s wool island in Galway at this year’s Venice Architecture Biennale.
The exhibition, titled In Search of Hy-Brasil, explores Ireland’s remote islands and their renewable resources.
It explores their diverse cultures, societies and experiences.
Curated by a team of five architects, Peter Carroll, Peter Cody, Elizabeth Hutz,
Marie Lahin and Joseph Mackie,
The exhibition presents a comprehensive study of the landscapes of the three islands: Innes Maine (Inishman),
UNESCO World Heritage Site Sceilg Mhichíl (Skellig Michael)
and Kliara (Clare Island) through drawings, surveys, film, sound, model, cartography and story.
The Irish Pavilion can be visited outside the Arsenale from 20 May to 26 November 2023 during the Venice Architecture Biennale, Italy.
Design features
The installation aims to provide an immersive experience,
while bridging the connections between the social fabric, cultural landscape and ecology of these islands.
and the transition between the global and the local, the regional and the intimate.
Renewable energy, ethical food production and biodiversity are other elements capturing the islands’ sustainable lifestyles, according to the team of curators.
The show is supported by graphics, models, films, sounds, writings, and language.
Which aims to raise awareness of the islanders’ management of resources and to balance the delicate balance between culture and nature.
The curators used local materials to highlight each island’s traditional heritage.
For example, the exhibit consists of sea bags woven from discarded fishermen’s rope,
a linen tapestry mapping the maritime region of Ireland,
and an abstraction of Sceilg Mhichíl made from Galway sheep’s wool.
The installation includes large slabs of local limestone from the offshore islands of Inis Meáin (Inishmaan)
and the UNESCO World Heritage Site Sceilg Mhichíl (Skellig Michael) and Cliara (Clare Island).
To achieve this, the theme of In Search of Hy-Brasil shifts between global, local, regional, and intimate efforts.
The exhibition gives international audiences an opportunity to experience
the connections between the social fabric, cultural landscape, and environment of these islands.
The show is also steeped in the Irish language through sound, writing and song.
