Modern languages curated by Katy West opens 14th July at the Barony Centre West Kilbride 

'Modern Languages offers the perspective of five international artists and designers with an interest in craft, its history and meaning. These artists seek to re-interpret the sometimes familiar, sometimes forgotten skills of Ireland’s craft tradition. In doing so they uncover fresh significance and meaning, offering new insights into the Irish vernacular.' Katy West


Aran 0.5 is one of four  'authentic' products I have created for the exhibition in 2011. Work developed from Aran 0.5 will become part of an Exhibition curated by Sebastian Bergne as part of St Etienne Design Bienalle in 2013. The theme of the Bienalle is Empathy 


Empathy, or “experiencing the other”

In the face of ecological threats, and long awaited economic revival, philosophers, sociologists and intellectuals now consider that it is necessary to rethink our society, and to imagine a new social contract based on a heightened respect for mankind. One of the notions explored is the foundation of a new society based on empathy – the mechanism whereby an individual can understand and share the fellow feelings and emotions of others.

Empathy, or “experiencing the other”, is the principal theme of this new 2013 edition of the Saint-Etienne International Design Biennial. A theme which invites a broad reflection involving all spheres of society but which is also directly linked to design as an activity of conception. Empathy has been at the heart of the discipline since its origins, intrinsic to the process of putting oneself in the place of the user to understand and anticipate his needs, or accompanying new forms of social rapport.

Throughout the 2013 Saint-Etienne International Design Biennial, we will be exploring the different issues that an empathetic society generates, and its capacity to reconstruct the world: what it proposes, but also what are the risks involved.'

Elsa Francès, Director and General Commissioner of the
Biennial.