I started a 3 month residency at ISCP New York in September, and started working on new pieces for a group exhibition back in Ireland titled ‘The Otherworld Hall’ in Solstice Arts Centre. This exhibition took the Boyne Valley and megalithic art and architecture as it’s starting point. I made drawings of the megalithic markings and attempted to put some sort of system of meaning on them, not just linguistic but considering other sounds, arial mapping, spiritual systems, astronomical bodies and natural or environmental patterns. The markings could relate to any of these, or none. They are so defined and deliberate but completely impossible to decipher. It is almost like a completely unrelated civilisation created the markings. As modern humans we do not have any of the same instincts or connections to these shapes any more and it is bizarre that even as humans, we cannot grasp the meaning of this system of communication created by other humans. It made me think about how we could possibly hope to recognise or decipher a communication ever received from an alien civilisation. The other thing that struck me about the markings was their certain lack of meaning when removed from their environment, such as some decorated megalithic stones placed in museums. Something that feels certain is that context is essential to these carvings. I began working with new materials; plexiglass and a type of polarised vinyl.
