aisling o'beirn
artist documentation site
   


1578 Grainne Ni Mhaille (Grace O’Malley) imprisoned in Dublin Castle dungeons 
Star: Adhara, Philippa Maguire


1957 Launch of Sputnik and of Laika, the first space dog, Star: 70 Vir, Ludmila Snigireva



30th Jan 1948. Death of Mahatma Gandhi, Star: HD 33564, Abhay Pandit





July 1995. Traveller participation in the Task Force on the Travelling people
Star: Xi Boötis, Margaret O’ Riada, Galway Traveler Movement



Start of hijri calendar Prophet Muhammad and followers emigrated from Mecca to Medina
Star: Kepler-452, Albaset Dhanoon



2000, One billionth citizen born in India, 16 years ago Star: Gliese 832, Abhay Pandit 

 

 



 

light years from here 2016

Galway Arts Centre & The Twelve, Galway
TULCA,The Headless City,
curated by D. Jewesbury

Light Years from Here’ by artist Aisling O’ Beirn is a project about looking at stars, telling stories about stars and thinking about the connection between time and stars.

Cultures across the world have used the stars to tell the time, plan land use and speculate about the future. People have long used the stars to navigate and stargaze. 

As all of the stars in the night sky are at different distances from the earth light takes different amounts of time to reach us. Depending on where we look at the night sky we can see starlight from different time periods.

To look at the night sky is to look back in time to different pasts simultaneously. Depending on where we look we can see light ranging from the start of the Muslim Hijri calendar (622) to the launch of Sputnik (1957).

The project ‘Light Years from Here’ involves a range of Galway residents from different ethnic / cultural backgrounds who contributed dates and related anecdotes that have political / historical or cultural significance.

The Centre for Astronomy in NUI Galway helped to identify stars related to the dates to make up the ‘Light Years from Here’ star charts and The Galway Astronomy Club are hosting the Light Years from Here stargazing event. The event takes place on Thursday 17th Nov from 6pm. Meet at The Twelve Hotel in Barna.  The event is free but booking is essential through the TULCA website.

With thanks for star contributions to: Albaset Dhanoon, Susana Campos, Philippa Maguire, Abhay Pandit, Matt Redman, Malcolm O’ Beirn, Roser Barceló Torta, Ludmila Snigireva, Elizabeth Power and Margaret O’ Riada, Galway Traveller Movement

With thanks to Ann Lyons, Community Knowledge Initiative, Institute for Lifecourse & Society, NUI, Galway,for her contacts and support.
Dr Matt Redman, Centre for Astronomy, NUIG for finding stars, James Barrett & Albaset Dhanoon for 3D Universe Tour  and Brian MacGarbhann, Galway Astronomy Club for the stargazing event



Installation show posters in Galway Arts Centre, image
Jonathan Sammon



Brian MacGabhann of Galway Astronomy Club explaining nature of light at Stargazing event, The Twelve Barna, image
Jonathan Sammon



Brian MacGabhann of Galway Astronomy Club explaining nature of light at Stargazing event, The Twelve Barna, image
Jonathan Sammon