Free Market

Small town market places, once the economic and social hubs of rural Ireland have undergone fundamental change and many have seen their function as places of exchange and congregation diminished. In this event Tara Kennedy from the Free Market team will lead a discussion about their project, with a focus on Bantry.

Free Market proposes to reclaim these places of interaction and community. Building upon the research of our team and others, as well the lived experience of these spaces, the exhibition re-imagines the shared urban territory of the small town market place. Rather than merely asking how we can “fix” towns, we also ask what we can learn from them.

Originally conceived as the Irish Pavilion for the Venice Architecture Biennale 2018, Free Market will evolve as it visits four towns during its Irish National Tour in 2019. The touring exhibition in Castleblayney, Macroom, Mountmellick and Kilmallock will include public events centred around an outdoor pavilion alongside an exhibition of architectural models and drawings with contextual soundscapes, stories, photography, and writings. The Irish tour of Ireland at Venice is supported by the Arts Council as part of its commitment to promote architecture to Irish audiences.

Ancillary events include an exhibition in Bantry Library through the week of the West Cork Literary Festival, displaying student projects from Cork Centre for Architectural Education, that investigate and provide proposals for the public spaces of the town of Bantry.