Long-standing and covered in moss and lichen, the court cairn at Rathlacken in North Mayo is the main inspiration. The site is part of an landscape of tombs and houses preserved beneath bog lands. These beautiful, weather-worn witnesses to passing millennia were moved into position by Ireland's first farmers over 5,000 years ago. This tremendous manoeuvring happened at a time when the dynamic between people and the natural world changed irrevocably. In doing so, the first farmers marked the moment of mastery over the natural world. The purpose of these monuments, it has been suggested, was to commemorate this shift. Arguably, it has culminated in today's crises of climate and the unseemly race for the earth's scarce resources.
As we approach the end of the era of earth exploitation, these monuments remind me that it was once possible to live in harmony with the planet and walk lightly on the earth.
'The Turning' will be on show in the Courthouse Arts Centre on October 16 and November 5, 2022 the Courthouse Arts Centre, Tinahely Co Wicklow. Opening Hours Wednesday – Saturday, 10.00 – 4pm.
For more info telephone 040238529
