Seanchaí (shan-a-hee): The traditional Irish storyteller, who are responsible for the transmission of Celtic culture, the history and laws of the people that were not written down, but memorized in long lyric poems which were recited.
With my current body of work, I am working in the tradition of the seanchaí, transmitting the cultural experience of Irish folklore to the greater populace. Much like the shift from the expressive, musical poetry of the bards (filí) to the written documentation of Irish illuminated manuscripts, these works follow the monk’s use of visual cues and imagery to transmit cultural details and custom. My use of traditional craft practices to create the sculptures is a direct mirror of the value and importance put on such practices by Celtic culture. Over generations the venerated history and laws that were transmitted helped to hold and preserve one of the oldest written and verbal cultures in Europe. Through the first hand exploration and research of the ruins of monastic communities and their extant remains in Ireland, Cornwall, and Scotland, I balance the ancient traditions and usage of materials with an artistic license that stays true to the essence of historical, cultural transmission. As a creator, the first hand physical involvement of a fluid tactile material is a conduit to the personal and physically exhaustive labour that went into the transcribing and documentation of many of the world's great ancient literary works, whose current existence is due in large part to the work of these northern European monks. While the monks combined the lyrical history with their skillful, sinuous documentation, I continue the artistic evolution through traditional Irish craftsmanship and the aesthetic and mnemonic value of imagery and composition set forth by the bards and monks.