IKEA Butter Churn for Gneeveguilla
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| Artist Name(s) | Gareth Kennedy |
| Artwork title | IKEA Butter Churn for Gneeveguilla |
| Description | A public art commission, curated by Vincent O'Shea for Kerry County Council, which saw the creation of a new fictional custom or ‘folk rite’ for the village of Gneeveguilla in County Kerry. Over the summer of 2011, artist Gareth Kennedy worked with the local people of Gneeveguilla to develop and enact an invented tradition for the village, involving the manufacture of a butter churn from an IKEA table and stainless steel shelf. Drawing on local skill-sets, and the wealth of local lore surrounding butter and its social, cultural and economical capital, every inhabitant (and visitor to the village) was invited to spin the churn during a public event, where a large pat of butter was produced. The butter was later packed into a firkin (also handcrafted from an IKEA table), which was paraded down the village’s only street, and brought to the local bog where it was ceremonially buried, to be preserved as bog butter. The project was filmed on super8. The finished 8mm film pays tribute to David and Sally Shaw Smith’s seminal film series ‘Hands’, which documented Irish craft traditions for Irish television (RTÉ) during the ‘70’s and ‘80’s. ‘IKEA Butter Churn for Gneeveguilla’ aims to co-opt and transgress the bland aesthetic order of global giant IKEA, and to serve as a celebration of the continuity of people and place, in spite of hard economic times. |
| Mediation | Gareth Kennedy (ed.) IKEA Butter Churn for Gneeveguilla, limited edition artists book (cottagelab: Kerry, 2012) ISBN 978-0-9554976-7-4
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| Biographies | Gareth Kennedy’s work is invested in a socially engaged practice which addresses specific environmental, social, aesthetic and economic concerns within located contexts. Over the last few years, he has been developing an anthropological aesthetic to generate 'folk fictions'. These works draw on the social, cultural and economic history of a people and a place to craft work that is a meaningful composite of these histories. This method has entailed working with such diverse professionals as archaeologists, anthropologists, film archivists, museum directors, folklorists and scientists as well as festival organizers, craftspeople, fishermen and park rangers amongst others. He envisages contemporary art as a powerful mode of generating meaningful new associations within contexts, as well as producing new knowledge through its processes. Kennedy also works collaboratively with artist Sarah Browne as KennedyBrowne. |
| Commission Type | Local Authority |
| Commissioner Name | Vincent O’Shea, Public Art Adviser, Kerry Co. Council |
| Commissioning process | Two Stage Competition |
| Artform | Visual Arts |
| Art Practice | Arts Participation |
| Funded By | Kerry County Council |
| Percent for art | Yes |
| Budget Range | 10000 - 30000 euro |
| Location | House/workshop location: 35 An Paírc (Courtesy of the Brosnan Bros Ltd.) |
| County | Kerry |
| Town | Gneeveguilla |
| Content contributor(s) | Web Editor |
| Public engagement | Gneeveguilla’s inhabitants and visitors |
| Associated professionals / Specialists involved | Carpenter: Martin Ashe Firkin maker: PJ Lowe Metal Worker: Jason Kearns Béan an Tí: Eileen Fleming Toyota Dyna driver: Timmy Brosnan Bog Diggers: Tom Hogan & Timothy Daly Museum Director: Peter Foynes Super 8 Camera: Gareth Kennedy & Sarah Browne Stills photography: Sarah Browne, Karl Kennedy & Gareth Kennedy Event Co-ordinator: Emma Houlihan House/workshop/location: 35 An Paírc, Gneeveguilla (courtesy of the Brosnan Bros Ltd.) Transport courtesy of Pat Knee, Gneeveguilla Cream sponsored by Dawn Dairies Public Art Adviser, Kerry Co. Council: Vincent O’Shea People in procession: Eileen Fleming, Oliver Fleming, Martin Ashe, Martin Murphy, Ted O’Connor, Terence O’Connor, Karl Kennedy, Aeneas Seán O’Leary, Óisín O’Leary, Jack O’Leary, Martina O’Connor, Ambrose Donnelly, Charlie Cronin, Tim Looney, Emma Houlihan Musicians:
Recording: Damien Dalton in Gneeveguilla, Co. Kerry Music Arrangements: Joe O’Sullivan & Damien Dalton Publication: Authors: Gareth Kennedy, Sunniva O'Flynn (Irish Film Institute), Peter Foynes (Director, Cork Butter Museum) and Pauline Garvey (Anthropology Lecturer, NUI Maynooth) Design & Production: Peter Maybury Printers: MM Artbook printing & repro The artist also wishes to thank: Martin and Amber Ashe; PJ Lowe; Timmy Brosnan and the Brosnan family; Declan Sheehan of Dawn Dairies; Vincent O’Shea; Sunniva O’Flynn of the Irish Film Institute; Pauline Garvey of NUI Maynooth; Peter Foynes of The Cork Butter Museum; Pat Knee; Ger Buckley of Midleton Whiskey; Karl Kennedy; Emma Houlihane; Sarah Browne; Julien Dorgere of Super 8 Ireland; Damien Dalton, Joe O’Sullivan & the musicians of Slieve Luachra; Patricia O’Hare of Muckross Folk Archive; Maeve Sikora and Finbarr Connolly of the National Museum of Ireland; HBO; Hugo Sahlin of Tilsammens Museum, Sweden; Principal Hugh Ryan & Gneeveguilla 5th Class 2011; Cumann Slieve Luachra; Chris Synnott; Raymonde Hilliard of The Kerry Cattle Society and all the people of Gneeveguilla who helped and participated in the realisation of this work. With special thanks to Eileen Fleming and the Brosnan Bros. Ltd. for their generous support of this project.
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