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Your Seedling Language is a site-specific artwork created for St. Catherine’s National School in Rush, County Dublin.
Launched in 2019, Your Seedling Language is comprised of two parts: a cluster of sound-and-light-producing sculptures in the school’s entry stairwell, and a sensor tower outside of the school. The artwork will behave differently on a bright, sunny day than on a cold, dark evening, or during a rainy week.
The artwork utilises environmental data that is commonly related to the growth of plants. The moisture of the soil, light and temperature outside of the school provides organic compositional parameters that manipulate a generative, eight-channel vocal composition. With over 1,000 syllabic samples to call upon, the artwork unravels ideas surrounding the theory of biolinguistics, providing the school with a language of its own.
The development of this work stemmed from research into Fingal’s rich multicultural history and how this influenced the now unused Fingallian dialect. Your Seedling Language celebrates the mixture of cultures and languages that flourish in this school.
Special thanks to the students, teaching staff and principal Ger Ó Sé of St. Catherine’s National School, Rush, County Dublin.
Curated by Jennie Guy
This commission was funded by The Department of Education and Skills and the Per Cent for Art Scheme
(Photography and Videography by Claire Jeanne Nash)
