This work was part of the FOH space sponsored by AIB in Waterford, Ireland.

The story behind this work:

In 2013, I was exploring abandoned and dilapidated places in Dublin, using scraps torn from walls as source material for my work.

At that time, many buildings in Dublin were deserted or neglected, with no care from their owners or the authorities. The harsh Irish weather further contributed to the deterioration of facades.

This is where my work began.

In one project, “I’m The Memory of Mannix F.,” I collected pieces of old wallpaper scattered on the sidewalk near a place called “Adifferentkettleoffishaltogether” on Ormond Quay by the River Liffey. They had fallen from a peeling wall. Some fragments contained remnants of old Japanese wallpaper, which I used in a mosaic on canvas.

On the wall, beneath the layer of paint that had peeled off, an inscription emerged: “The Oyama,” revealing traces of what had been there before someone painted over the facade. The inscription referred to Mas Oyama, a legendary karate master.

By transferring fragments of each place onto canvas, I aimed to draw attention to the stories hidden beneath the surface of neglect, stories that might otherwise remain untold as the housing crisis inevitably reshaped these spaces.