Suppose a Conversation: A conversation between Kate Strain, Jenny O’Leary and Finn Richards

This conversation occurred in the aftermath of the drawbridge workshop and appeared in the Building a (Draw)bridge zine.

Finn: Kate, what’s the problem that you’re trying to overcome in Kunstverein?

Kate: We have a series of concrete and stone steps at the threshold that impede access, that’s essentially what we’re trying to overcome, creatively. 

Finn: Thanks Kate. Jenny, what did you think when you first heard about this project?

Jenny: When we started looking at making Kunstverein accessible, we imagined a moat we had to cross and thought of fairytales, castles and drawbridges. We wanted an intervention that could be (almost) contained within a door reveal. One that anyone could potentially make at their door without having to wait for someone else to change a footpath.

Finn: Jenny, that’s really inspiring. Kate, could you say a little about the ‘Suppose a Stone’ project, and how the drawbridge relates to this?

Kate: Suppose a Stone was an all-ages interspecies accessibility study of the town of Aughrim. The project was initiated by Kunstverein Aughrim and Howff Architects. It was realised in collaboration with Aughrim Tidy Towns CLG, Aughrim Active Retirement Group and Aughrim’s Men’s Sheds. The project was supported by the Irish Architecture Foundation’s Reimagine Hometown Architect initiative.

It began as an open-ended, process-oriented quest to consider accessibility (in its widest possible sense). We started by casting out questions via a series of surveys and activity maps that sought responses from the local community. Based on our findings we developed three workshop oriented events… a Sensory Walk devised in collaboration with choreographer Aoife McAtamney, a walkability study carried out with Wicklow County Council and Age Action Ireland, and finally, a Drawbridge Workshop that sought to tangibly approach the very concrete problem of a series of stone and cement steps that make access to the Kunstverein a big challenge.

The project was called ‘Suppose a Stone’ after Brian Dillon’s book (published in 2020) and Gertrude Stein’s invitation to ‘Suppose a sentence’ (in a text written in 1934). Poets and writers do things with words and artists and architects do things with materials. Suppose we could change the physical and aesthetic experience of our built environments as easily as write up ideas or draft applications. Stones too can be malleable, slippery things. Suppose we could explore that. Where might it lead us and what could happen?

Finn: Kate, thanks for that, it’s fascinating to hear the bigger story of how we ended up here. How important is it to you that Kunstverein Aughrim engages with its local community on projects like ‘Suppose a Stone’?

Kate: Engaging with our local community is not just important, it’s vital! Kunstverein is a curatorial production office, a space to engage with art in various stages of creation and production, and a space to support artists and develop artistic practice. But it’s also my home, and I and my family are active members of this community. It feels only natural that Kunstverein is an active member of the community too.

Finn: Kate, thanks, I love your attitude towards your community. Jenny, the colours and playfulness of the drawbridge remind me of the magic of theatre. But why not just a nice plank of wood? How do you think about the balance between practical goals and the making of something beautiful in your practice?

Jenny: For this workshop we wanted to make the design theatrical and provocative, colour makes this bridge visible, it draws attention and prompts conversation. We have been thinking about accessibility in Aughrim for over a year now. During that time we reflected on the work of magician and ecologist David Abram. For him, magic happens when our expectations are disrupted, our regular habits of perception are confused, leaving openness and connection. The drawbridge evokes imaginary places and beings. The rippling colours on the undulating fins recall the water movement of a moat, a result of less than even ground surface and inspired by artist Rana Begum.

We hope the drawbridge can highlight the lack of accessibility in Aughrim, but also inspire ideas for how that might be tackled. We became aware of grant funding to make shopfronts accessible through county councils elsewhere (not yet Wicklow). Townscapes often rely on the council engineers to remove curbs, clear paths and build ramps. One idea behind this design was that it could sit within a door frame, and become part of a shopfront. This prototype is more like a piece of door furniture. We intend to hand this to the community to spark conversation about future possibilities.

Finn: Thanks Jenny, final question then. What role do you think architecture can play in helping to shape much needed solutions to civic problems (such as access)?

Jenny: I don’t want to overestimate the role architecture can have in larger systemic and policy issues. However I do think it can play a part in the solutions. Certainly in our work we try to be cognisant of our responsibilities to our human community, and to our wider environment. We want to be careful, thoughtful and innovative in our designs and processes. In considering accessibility we think about physical barriers, but also about social interaction and belonging. Making places that welcome and serve people from all backgrounds and with diverse capabilities is beneficial to everyone.

Our input is usually physical and built. But here, because it’s not permanent, our input is just to sow the seed of an idea, a possibility. For us, the possibilities keep growing. Talking to Kate recently we imagined a resin ramp (inspired by an artist Kate is working with)… the process continues!

Finn: So Kate, final question for you. What do you think art offers towards problems of a civic nature?

Kate: Art offers ways of seeing things differently to how they currently are. Art gives us not only the tools to create, but also the potential to imagine. As a practice or a process it can set impossible ideas in motion, I find a kind of magic in that. Art rarely solves problems, but it always generates possibilities!