Memory Maypole

description

The Memory Maypole is a fun new art installation looking to create a living testament to the varied and vivid memories of the Irish Festival Season 2016. 

Festivals are a central part to the lifestyle of a lot of the Irish population. As a country we've moved largely from consuming objects to consuming experiences. The value of an experience is less so in the moment itself but the potency memory of the moment. The Memory Maypole has been accepted into Body & Soul 2016 with a few other fun events in the works. Will you help us make it happen?!

Over the course of the Summer, audiences from festivals across Ireland will attach their memories to the ribbons on the Memory Maypole. On the last evening of each festival we hold a special Maypole dance where the ribbons, laced through with the collective memories of the audience, are wrapped around the maypole. As the Memory Maypole moves across Ireland it creates a layered ode to the power of music, art, and the memories we make together.

We are excited about experimenting with a shift in our practice. Instead of just making a visual and conceptual representation of a memory or emotion we are making a tangible memory bank from artefacts’. Most importantly -strangers donate said artefacts’ as festival guests whose memories may be intrinsic to festival taking place are entwined. In this way, the fibres of the thickening memory bank is creating a tapestry of transient and now interconnecting stories about strangers sharing the festival experience.

We didn’t want to present a piece that could only be viewed. We want to create something that becomes art by encouraging interactions with people and welcoming their additions, whilst we essentially let go of the control of its aesthetic. Most importantly, we need you to make it happen! The experience of the Maypole is all about the power of the crowd, and we could do with a little crowd funding to get us going. 

Please help us put together a few quid to buy the materials to make the Memory Maypole happen. And then come visit it at a festival near you to make sure your memory forms part of the tapestry of Summer 2016. Love Amy & Shauna (Whimsy & EYE)

Click here if you want to see a few examples of all the pretty pictures we're giving away as rewards!