Susan O’Neill
she/her
How do we make the invisible visible?
Susan O’ Neill is a UI/UX designer and part-time student on the MA Art and Social Action. Current practice based research explores the potential for creative interventions to disseminate complex social issues into something more tangible and accessible. With increasingly pressing societal challenges, how can we leverage a wealth of existing research and elevate it so that it speaks to different audiences? How can a narrative be weaved from statistics to humanise the people behind the numbers? In her first year of the MA, Susan has examined the representation of Traveller culture in mainstream media and culture and engaged with her MA peers Caoimhe Cronin and Cleide Regina Oliveira to develop a group project called 'Leisure in the Liberties'. This project took as its starting point, a 1986 Development Plan from the local SICCDA Archive, which was reactivated through installation and interactive mapping, to prompt conversation and connect with local campaigns for progress. By shifting the perspective, Susan’s practice aims to change the narrative, provoke engagement and participation and support community initiatives.
Invisible/Visible, an exploration of Traveller culture in Ireland. All images © Susan O'Neill
Image from the installation of Leisure in the Liberties - creative engagements with the SICCDA archive, a project with Caoimhe Cronin and Cleide Regina Oliveira.
Public engagement with a map proposing ideas for leisure in the Liberties area. The map (© Gerry Cahill Architects) was an artefact from the SICCDA archive showing plans from the 1980's for a leisure centre that never materialised.