Corcaigh, Republic of Ireland September 15th 2023 – Come Home Journal #26

A reckoning of the journey (turas) to tour Dancing Shadows in Ireland, a retrospective of my film works as part of the Come Home project.

It’s misadventure you need to be wary of.

Dragging my case from the railway station to the hotel, an old hospital, I see murals and lights, people having fun. I am not having fun. The hills of Cork erupt rudely beneath me and my case. Climbing and waning, rising and rolling. Public transport is great when its right there. I refuse to pay to get into a car. At this point I need the cash to stay in my pocket!

Next day I see Cork in full daylight. The colours and houses and roads and Shandon Tower. A million ways into town over the river Lee and I’ll take them all before I’m done. Getting lost is really just adventure. You always find your way home eventually. It’s misadventure you need to be wary of.

I wander the city and find the Sewing Palace, the English Market and the Art Gallery. In the Art gallery I find the work of the incomparable Rita Duffy. Incredibly moving and humous works that take my heart by storm. Outspoken activist she says that flags and nationalities shouldn’t be proclaimed anywhere but airports. And likely she has her doubts about airports too. I return to her works every day I am in Cork.

The city is special. It has a sense of artful history. One of my return visits are for a gallery tour. The guide Matthew talks about art being the way to enter history. A way of discovering how people felt, not just what happened, from a usually white male perspective. The Art Gallery is over 250 years old and its been beautifully and thoughtfully modernised to fulfil the expectations of contemporary audiences.

I fall in love with Matthew as I follow the crowd that follows him. I forget what he says. I can only hear his sing-song.

My love though is unrequited. He barely sees me. He has not heard me speak. He does not know how my heart longs. He did once though look in my general direction. And that’s what I’ll hold onto. Tight.

IMAGE CREDIT: Cork Mural by Erin M McCuskey

The image journal can be found in this Collection – Ireland –  Flickr Album – in this album – Cork