The Imagination of Children.V&A MoC London.2012

Giant chair containing 10 min audio of child telling her version of the princess and the pea story.

80″x48′ Lambda print laminated onto 12mm MDF.

press to hear  how does that story go again? 10 min Audio

The V&A Museum of Childhood, Cambridge Heath Road. London E2 9PA. UK.

The Imagination of Children  15 October 2011 – 5 February 2012.

The Imagination of Children brings together nine visual artists who are fascinated by children’s ability to play and ‘make believe’, in particular the ways in which they can live in their imagination. Historically children’s imaginings have often been seen as a source of conflict with the adult world but this display recognizes and celebrates the profound creativity of a child’s imagination. Some works observe that children can readily become someone they are not for the purposes of a game and that fantastical stories are created on a daily basis. Other pieces take as a starting point the way in which a child’s perception of the world can often find expression through their physical activity. Curated by Rebecca Fortnum.
How does that story go again…?
Color photograph 80″x48″ and 10 minute Audio installation housed in giant chair of child telling her version of the princess and the pea story.
The piece relates to memory, how we are told stories and our memory of them. In telling and retelling the story it changes, we make it fit our idea of what we want the story to be, whether conscious or unconsciously. I’m interested in the concept of fact and fiction and how they are intertwined in fairy tales, how morals and meaning are taken from these tales and want to question our interpretation of these and how we make them relevant to our culture and society today. The work also deals with issues of loss and innocence, what children are exposed to and how that information shapes them. The work questions our notions of truth and accuracy, it brings up the question can you believe everything you hear and should you? And can you rely on memory or what it is you think you remember?

Kindly supported by Culture Ireland and The Arts Council of Ireland..