Nature and Place commissions
Nature and Place is a series of temporary works, taking inspiration from the forests of Ticknock, Tibradden, Barnaslingan, Carrickgollogan, Kilmashogue and Ballyedmonduff.
Join us for a special guided walk to celebrate the launch of new work by Louis Haugh and Cracking Light Productions as part of Nature and Place for National Tree Week at Ticknock Forest on Sunday 8 March at 11.00am
We will do a short walk led by the artists and supported by Dublin Mountains Partnership Volunteer Rangers. There will be time to hear from the artists about the unique work they have created. The walk will be approximately 3km and will take 45 minutes to an hour. The starting point is the upper car park at Ticknock Hill. Please note that it is steep at times so is not suitable for those with limited mobility. No booking is required.
2025/26 Projects: Louis Haugh / Cracking Light
Visual artist Louis Haugh’s multimedia work ‘Shared Terrain’, invited forest users to actively contribute to the creation of a video work and accompanying artist book. Participants were asked to pose a question to the forest, as a way of remembering and celebrating Ireland’s deep spiritual connection to trees and woodland. These questions form the audio track of the video and appear throughout the artist book as text overlays. The project combines public participation, visual storytelling and environmental research, and includes contributions from climate and forestry experts.
‘Forest Songs’ by the artist duo Cracking Light Productions, comprised of Maeve Stone and Alex Gill, which presents three love songs to the Dublin forests, created in collaboration with award-winning composer Tom Lane, alongside accompanying videos. The lyrics and melodies of each song are built from interviews with forest users, exploring their motivation to spend time in the forests, what it changes in them, and what they feel needs to be protected for the future. The accompanying videos feature macro photography of forest life, from the species inhabiting the forest floor to the sky, capturing the rhythms of the landscape. Watch and Listen to Forest Songs.
These two projects are funded by Creative Ireland dlr Creative Communities programme, the Dublin Mountains Partnership and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council. Supported by Coillte.
Past Projects
Four projects were commissioned in 2024. Three were awarded funding by dlr Arts Office to develop projects between December 2023 and March 2024 - Martin Healy, Méadhbh O'Connor, and Robert Coleman with Laura Sarah Dowdall. Nature and Place was supported by Coillte and the Dublin Mountains Partnership. Ticknock: What's Going On? by artists Listen and Breathe was the fourth project to be commissioned, and was funded by Creative Ireland.
Download PDF of Martin Healy's Silva Here:
Silva PDF
Download Méadhbh O'Connor's sound files and Sky Walkers Map Here:
Sky Walkers Soundfiles
Ticknock: What's Going On? Listen and Breathe
Download Ticknock What's Going On
Martin Healy
Martin has captured a series of photographs while walking in and observing the six forests over a period of two months. The photographs were taken in a variety of locations and include wide-angle images of tree cover, close-ups of the various flora and fleeting images of birds. Healy describes the resulting images as “observations in the field” – a visual language for the thoughts and observations that occur while undertaking these walks. The resulting photographs have been compiled into a digital artist publication entitled Silva.
Martin Healy's work has been shown widely both nationally and internationally. International residencies include CCA, Andratx, Mallorca, 2022; Cove Park, Scotland, 2014; Temple Bar Gallery & Studios / HIAP-International Residency Exchange, Helsinki, 2010; Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris, 2008; Artists’ Residency Programme at the Irish Museum of Modern Art, 2007; the International Studio Programme Residency at PS1 Contemporary Art Centre, New York, 2000/01.
Méadhbh O'Connor
This sonic artwork invites people to take a walk in the forests of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, stopping at key sites to listen and take a private moment to reflect. O’Connor’s work features six meditative poems written and recorded by the artist, which can be downloaded to phones or other listening devices free of charge, along with an artistic map of the forests. Sky Walkers conjures mysterious and fantastical vignettes based on the local landscape. The poems, which have historical, mythical, scientific and futuristic allusions, are set over ambient soundscapes. The sound files and map are available to download here for self-guided walks.
Méadhbh O’Connor is a visual artist whose work is composed of an extended exploration at the intersections of art, science, technology and environment. She uses sculptural and multimedia installation, image making and the written and spoken word. She has a decade of experience working in parallel with scientific researchers with whom she shares deep interests in the underlying structures of nature.
Robert Coleman / Laura Sarah Dowdall
Reroot was a site-specific soundwalk, co-created by composer Robert Coleman and dancer Laura Sarah Dowdall, which explored the sensory soundscape of Barnaslingan Wood. Through listening and somatic exercises, field recordings that reveal sounds typically inaudible to the human ear – such as the internal sounds of trees – and performance, Reroot presented an immersive experience. Five guided walks of Reroot took place in March 2024.
Composer Robert Coleman’s current work draws from soundscape studies, site-specific art, field recording, and community and participatory arts. Laura Sarah Dowdall is an innovative dance artist creating engaging work, which incorporates site-specific performance, spoken word and film.
Ticknock: What's Going On? Listen and Breathe
This was the fourth project to be commissioned, and was funded by Creative Ireland. It is a guided podcast which explores the changing landscape of our forests over seasons, years and millennia. The core collaborators Hugh Farrell, Tyler Kieffer and Kevin McNamara have created the work through a series of in-depth interviews with the caretakers and communities who engage with our forests. It can be listened to while walking from Ticknock Forest car park to Fairy Castle. The starting point is the upper car park at Coillte’s Ticknock Forest (Google Maps link) and the walk will take about an hour. Please note that it is steep at times so is not suitable for those with limited mobility. It can also be listened to as a podcast if you are unable to visit the forest.
Download the podcast to your device before in advance, as the signal gets patchy towards the top. Download it here or on the major podcast platforms by searching for Ticknock: What's Going On?
Gallery
