Voices of Cork

Above the earth there is a satellite, which looks down at Cork, and watches the movements of people and cars around the city. Down in the hub, small cameras watch the city in detail, and meteorological equipment tastes the weather. Through up to date technology, this information is transformed into a knitting pattern, which constantly shifts. Down in the city, there is a long room in the crypt of St. Luke's Church, where dozens of people knit for a year. "The Knitting Map" is an amazing project, so many things rolled into one, a textile project, art installation and, a community project. It is mammoth keeping everything going. With the community side, people need to feel rewarded and valued...setting up an atmosphere, which allows people to meet other people and yet the knitting gets done...then you have the textiles...the technology and its unpredictability...the fact that it's not a map of a place but a year...as an art installation and developing the artistic worth of it, finding a forum for it, making connections with other places that the craft of it can be recognized" (Elizabeth O'Dea, half-angel Company Administrator, 2005). "The Knitting Map" is a fabric art and technology project, created over the 2005 calendar year, in collaboration with several communities, and a newly created community of knitters. Voices chart the memories, dreams and life experiences of the community of "The Knitting Map". The stories are fascinating, diverse and a cross section of the human experience.

Kieran McCarthy is a born and bred Corkonian. Kieran graduated from University College Cork in 1999 with a Joint Honours Bachelor of Arts Degree in Geography and Archaeology. Kieran has lectured widely on Cork's past in association with numerous institutions, in particular University College Cork, the Cork Education and Support Centre, the Vocational Educational Committee and with various community associations within Cork City. In particular, Kieran has a keen interest in disseminating knowledge about the importance of local history in Cork's primary and post primary schools. Since 2003, he annually co-ordinates the Discover Cork: Schools'History Project. He has been involved in the compilation of several television reports for R.T.E. on various aspects of Cork's history. Kieran is particularly known for his local history column in Inside Cork, a weekly Cork newspaper in which he has been writing a series on the development of Cork City since October 1999. In addition to publishing over three hundred articles on Cork's development through that medium, he has published four books; Pathways Through Time, Historical Walking Trails of Cork City (2001), Cork: A Pictorial Journey (2001), Discover Cork (2003) and A Dream Unfolding, Portrait of St. Patrick's Hospital (2004) Kieran is currently working as a freelance historical consultant and is pursuing a Masters of Philosophy (M.Phil) in Geography in the Department of Geography, University College Cork.