In my current work, I am examining the architecture of class in Dublin city. I use the term architecture as it is a topic/system that is a lot more complicated and expansive than a simple tiered system. From a social aspect, the things that divide us into different classes are seemingly small and insignificant details like a different number on the end of your postcode or which side of the Liffey you’re on. These small details are used more so to divide and exclude rather than unite. I am interested in the treatment of the working class within society and highlighting its importance. Giving it a voice. At a time where gentrification is running rampant through the city, so too does the fantasy behind proposed “regeneration” sites. Promises of perfect communities are virtually rendered, printed and adorned around the ongoing construction of sites such as Cherrywood and Clongriffin.
These digital renderings depict idealised communities in an idyllic sunny setting, a clean urban utopia, free from troubles. But these utopias are ones that can only exist virtually. They are fictional ideals conceived from a want to erase the problems and struggles in real communities. Eradicating a pest.
In my practice, I work with a variety of mediums, such as scripting, audio, video, sculpture, and virtual reality. The isolation of virtual environments is an element that I use as a tool within my work, which is one of the reasons as to why I tend to favour virtual reality as a medium.