We Only Want the Earth Award 2020

In 2020 A4 Sounds, in partnership with Fire Station Artists’ Studios, Dublin Central Housing Action and consulting artist Kerry Guinan, announced Áine O’Hara as the recipient of the first We Only Want the Earth project award.

We Only Want the Earth is a programme of socially-engaged arts activities exploring questions of the kind of society we want and how we get there. The programme is intended as a broad conversation about the goals and strategies of social change. A central aim of the We Only Want the Earth programme is to give material support and a platform to artists who are often silenced, or who are spoken about rather than listened to. This 6-month supported project award supports an artist or group of artists who are experiencing or who have previously experienced homelesness to develop and exhibit a body of work, and provide the selected artist or group of artists with an opportunity to make contacts and identify resources that might help them to further develop their artistic practice.

Áine O’Hara is a multidisciplinary artist, theatre maker and designer and graduate of IADT, Dun Laoghaire and The Lir, Trinity College Dublin.

Áine has presented work at Dublin Fringe Festival; Dublin Live Art Festival; Live Collision International Festival; Smock Alley: Scene and Heard festival of new work; Westival: Westport Music and Arts Festival; Theatre Machine at Project Arts Centre; participant in the Abbey Begins New Writing programme 2019. Further recent awards/recognitions include: Outburst Queer Fringe Award 2019, Oileán Artist in Residence 2019, DUETS programme Dublin Fringe Festival 2019, Ps2 residency Belfast 2019, World of Co Residency, Sofia, Bulgaria 2019 and DIVA Award Electric Picnic 2017. Áine has also worked in art departments for film and tv including ‘Red Rock’ currently on Virgin Media One and upcoming Irish feature film ‘Broken Law’ by Paddy Slattery.

During Áine’s residency they worked on Calling in Sick, a body of work about disability, productivity and what it means to be a useful member of society. Áine has several chronic illnesses, including fibromyalgia which as of now is not recognised as a disability in Ireland. They are developing a body of work based on their and other chronic illness sufferers’ experiences of our health service in Ireland. They are interested in who is believed when they say they are in pain and is investigating whether or not disabled people can ever be equal under a capitalist society. Calling in Sick explores healthcare utopias, game shows where the prize is treatment, and whether political protest and artistic actions can actually change the law in this country.