Cultivate: A Village Vision for Rathnure, 2023

Program Description

This residency imagined new opportunities and improved community amenities for the village of Rathnure in County Wexford. This community-led vision was created through a community co-design workshop process in May 2023, initiated by Rathnure Development Group in collaboration with Cow House Studios and Workhouse Union.

The process included school workshops with 208 pupils from Rathnure Primary School led by Paul Bokslag exploring children’s sense of place and belonging. Through an Open Call residency opportunity for emerging and graduate architects Aideen O’Donovan, Alice Bowler, Helen McFadden and Lara Clifford spent two-weeks at Cow House Studios engaging with the wider community of Rathnure. The four graduate architects worked alongside Cow House Studios, Workhouse Union, the Rathnure Development Group and members of the local community to develop a village vision to support the development of inclusive, meaningful and positive places within the existing footprint of the village which respond to the needs of the people of the wider Rathnure community.

Through observation, dialogue and co-design workshops with members of the Development Group and local community the old-school house, the church car park and the derelict cottage and adjoining land located next to the graveyard were identified to be key areas of opportunity which could respond to growing local needs. With further development these three areas can facilitate a meaningful transformation for the village.

Located at the foothills of the Blackstairs mountains, the village of Rathnure has a rich cultural history; sharing a vibrant hurling and musical heritage with nearby Killann. Ancient history is clearly visible with numerous raths in close proximity to the village, and knowledge of mass paths from the mountain and Killann can be recalled with one still in use until recent years. Houses such as Monksgrange and Coolbawn are connected to the community's social, political and economic histories.

This report was prepared over the course of two weeks by Aideen O’Donovan, Alice Bowler, Helen McFadden and Lara Clifford with Workhouse Union and Cow House Studios, supported by Wexford Arts Office and The Arts Council.

The Rathnure Development Group aims to work with the wider Rathnure community and relevant stakeholders to bring about a coordinated approach to community development opportunities and to build upon a shared understanding of the needs and aspirations of the community. The group aims to develop accessible and age-friendly facilities and amenities to meet the diverse and expanding needs of all members of the community and visitors to the area, while always keeping the social, cultural and economic well-being of all community members at its core.

Workhouse Union is a community co-design organisation supporting the development of inclusive, meaningful, positive places and communities.