THE TIME MACHINE is an immersive exhibition that transforms an old Bank in Miltown Malbay into a portal, transporting you to the past and future to help us imagine ourselves in 2084.
It all begins with an idea. John O’Donohue once said that 'The Heart of Time is Possibility’ and we love the hope in that. To us The Time Machine is a way to conjure possibilities, working with the community to imagine possible futures. It’s a Creative Climate project that makes the big picture feel personal and elevates the best ideas of our shared history to help draw a map to the future.
THIS PROJECT WAS BUILT THROUGH COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND SO WE BEGAN A SIX MONTH CREATIVE CONSULTATION WITH THE PEOPLE OF MILTOWN MALBAY IN FEBRUARY 2024. THIS INVOLVED A MONTHLY EVENT CALLED KITCHEN TABLE CONVERSATIONS - EACH HAD A THEME TO CORRESPOND TO THE THEMATIC PILLARS OF THE WORK - A SURVEY WHICH RAN FOR THREE MONTHS VIA CLARE COUNTY LIBARY’S ‘HAVE YOUR SAY’ PORTAL AND A SERIES OF COMMUNITY CANVASSES.
COMMUNITY CANVAS
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COMMUNITY CANVAS -
In July we canvassed door to door in Miltown Malbay to ask people how they use their homes and what they think the community needs most for the future.
INSTALLATION: 1984 AND 2084
EXHIBITION SPACE
What People Said
Anonymous audience feedback gathered on cassette via an 1980s tape deck:
Particularly like the 2084 space - the key message for me is that we live in partnership with nature. If we respect the world around us the world around us respects us. And that’s a lesson we badly need to learn There’s food for thought there and a sense that there’s very little there that can’t begin straight away. And that’s something I will take away with me now. Thank you.
I love the imagination for all of this project, the ideas and the forward thinking, this is humanity, this is what we do to manage to overcome the challenges. I really think we need to do that very quickly, we need more retrofitting and we need more energy efficiency. I loved all the kitchen table conversations, they just get people thinking, having those conversations, ideas however extravagant they were. We need to have more of this, more thinking big, thinking for the future.
I really hope more people get to see it, it would be a great thing to get to travel around ireland. I think that it’s so thought provoking - especially if you have time to read through the exhibition at the end, there’s so much in that’s very very important - I think people will be inspired to think about how they choose to spend their money, how they choose to live their lives and how they choose to spend their time. It’s great for social connection
It has made me question the way we use or consume energy and products.
This was a really thought provoking exhibition, I had no idea what to expect coming in here and it gives a positive spin on the future which in the current climate is quite negative and as communities we can develop and we can grow by working together.
What’s palpable is the community involvement and the artists went to great efforts to involve the community in this project and to imagine the future with them.
I really enjoyed this exhibition. It has definitely prompted me to think more carefully about how we live, about mass consumerism and just to be more careful going forward.
I think it has very much to do with examining our own values, reshaping it and making a collective goal from here. I really enjoyed the whole journey and it’s absolutely amazing what you have created
I love the MyGug - the egg composter idea - a process of composting that’s very efficient and you see the results of it very quickly. That’s amazing
A beautiful collaboration of the past the present and the future. Very inspiring and hopeful as to what our future could be for the community, nature and food. All the wonderful things. Thank you for doing this.
Pulling people together from the community to think about big ideas and then producing a thought provoking piece of art - I think it changes peoples minds about the future and the present and what could be more valuable than that!
It was just so hard to believe the joy I felt to see a positive view of 2084, not at all what I expected. I’m so glad I took time to come here
The Time Machine is a recipient of Spark Funding through the Creative Climate Action fund, an initiative from the Creative Ireland Programme. It is funded by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media in collaboration with the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications.
The fund supports creative, cultural and artistic projects that build awareness around climate change and empower citizens to make meaningful behavioural transformations.
The Creative Ireland projects:
— Encourage everyone to rethink their lifestyles
— Connect with the biodiversity crisis
— Enable a fair and just transition in making lifestyle changes
— Assist citizens to understand the climate crisis
— Adapt to effects of climate change
Creative Ireland is a five-year programme which connects people, creativity and wellbeing. We are an all-of-government culture and wellbeing programme that inspires and transforms people, places and communities through creativity. We are committed to the vision that every person in Ireland should have the opportunity to realise their full creative potential.
Further information on the Climate Action Fund is available.
Department of Environment, Climate and Communication’s, Climate Action Fund
The Climate Action Fund was established on a statutory basis in 2020 to provide support for projects, initiatives and research that contribute to the achievement of Ireland’s climate and energy targets, and for projects and initiatives in regions of the State, and within sectors of the economy, impacted by the transition to a low carbon economy. The Fund is resourced from from a number of sources, including proceeds from the levy paid to the National Oil Reserves Agency (NORA) in respect of relevant disposals of petroleum products, after the funding requirements of NORA have been met.
Further information on the Climate Action Fund is available.