C Both Sides

C Both Sides was a collective art project that started in 2006 by artists Teresa Doyle and Edel O Reilly Flynn in association with Westmeath County Council.[1] The project consisted of people being invited to send postcards from all over Ireland to Doyle and O Reilly Flynn's addresses which were then later displayed in Mullingar Arts Centre in 2007. The project was later expanded and culminated in an exhibition held in Dublin in 2009.

Background

Initially, knowledge of the project spread through internet postings and press releases in local papers. Over 500 cards were received and collated. This small exhibition then travelled to New York. The project was intended to create a social document of Ireland at the time.[2]

Following the initial C Both Sides exhibition, An Post decided to sponsor the ongoing project.[2] The launch of "An Post C Both Sides", a 12-month project, took place in November 2007 at the Gallery of Photography, Meeting House Square in Temple Bar.[3][4][5] At the launch, Teresa Doyle made a speech about the beginning of Ireland's largest "collaborative art exhibition".[5]

Activities

Each month of the project's operation had a different theme, which guided the participants when creating a postcard.[2] Workshops were held based on the theme of the month. In July, for example, the theme was prisoners, and a workshop was held in Limerick Prison with some of the inmates. The theme for August was migration, and a workshop was held in Ilac Centre City Library, with a group of migrants.[6][7]

Each month, a celebrity was also invited to make a postcard, which was also featured on the website along with a short interview based on the topic of postcards.[8]

With An Post's sponsorship, the project was rolled out nationally, and each household in Ireland received a blank postcard. The participants were encouraged to consider "both sides" of the postcard. In total, over 3,000 submissions were received, of which 250 were chosen by a panel, to be displayed in an exhibition.[9]

Exhibition

The final culmination of a year's work was the opening of the exhibition in the Dublin Civic Offices, on Wood Quay.[10] Travel writer and broadcaster, Manchán Magan opened the exhibition in March 2009.[11]

The postcards were displayed in pigeonholes that used to be integral to the sorting of post before the emergence of mechanised sorting machines. The pigeonholes were fitted with clear Perspex frames, which were mounted on a rotating spindle. This allowed the viewer to see "both sides" of the postcard.[9]

References
  1. "Wishing they were here to stay". The Irish Times. 3 March 2008. Retrieved 6 October 2010.
  2. "Postcard art exhibition plan unveiled". The Irish Times. 6 November 2007. Retrieved 6 October 2010.
  3. "An Post". Anpostcbothsides.ie. Retrieved 6 October 2010.
  4. "An Post postcard art exhibition plan unveiled" (PDF). The Epoch Times. 11 November 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 August 2011. Retrieved 6 October 2010 – via epoch-archive.com.
  5. "Mullingar art idea goes national – so get drawing!". westmeathexaminer.ie. Westmeath Examiner. 24 November 2007. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 6 October 2010.
  6. "Migrants put thoughts into designing postcards as part of An Post scheme". The Irish Times. 28 July 2008. Retrieved 6 October 2010.
  7. "Forum on Migration and Communications". FOMACS. Archived from the original on 26 July 2011. Retrieved 6 October 2010.
  8. "An Post". Anpostcbothsides.ie. Archived from the original on 8 June 2010. Retrieved 6 October 2010.
  9. "Curatorial Statement". Archived from the original on 8 June 2010. Retrieved 5 October 2010.
  10. Allison Bray (31 March 2009). "Keano gets 'carded' in An Post exhibition". Independent.ie. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  11. "Postcards from home". The Irish Times. 28 March 2009.
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