Project Cleansweep
Dara McGrath
PhotoIreland
English
Softcover
Edition of 200
32 pages
148 x 210 mm
2016
ISBN 9780957684942
Project Cleansweep takes its name from a Ministry of Defence (MoD) report called Operation Cleansweep issued in 2011, identifying sites in the UK where tens of thousands of tonnes of mustard gas, phosgene and other lethal chemicals were, since World War 1, made, processed, stored, burned and dumped in England, Wales and Scotland. To this day such sites along with biological weapons testing, which chemical weapons is inextricably linked to, remain problematic even today when they have been returned to civilian usage. Details of Operation Cleansweep was released into the public realm to provide “reassurance” that residual contamination at UK sites did not pose a risk to human health or the environment.
Even today some of these sites have ongoing testing to monitor for contaminants. In all 14 sites were identified in this report. Subsequent research uncovered a further 56+ sites in the UK where chemical and biological weapons were once manufactured, stored, and tested. These sites are now almost all returned to civilian use, and are now within the landscape as local bathing spots, public parks, pathways, deer sanctuaries, industrial estates and petrochemical facilities amongst others. They are post militarised environments and infrastructure, and a reminder still of what was a sustained military land grab in the 20th century, when over 371,000 hectares of the British landmass was reserved and appropriated for military use.
Designed by Ángel Luis González Fernández.
(Source: https://newirishworks.com/project/dara-mcgrath-project-cleansweep/)
About the Artist
Dara’s central concern lies in exploring transitional spaces, those in-between places where architecture, landscape and the built environment often intersect, and where a dialogue – of absence rather than presence – is created. Their practice is driven by explorations of these charged, shifting entities – buildings that have come to the end of their functionality, the changing functionality of a landscape, human interruptions in the landscape – that exist in urban, rural and suburban contexts.
daramcgrath.com
(Source: https://daramcgrath.com/about/)
About The Series
Selected by an international panel of 23 professionals, New Irish Works brings you a selection of 20 projects and 20 photographers representing the diverse range of practices coming from Ireland. New Irish Works 2016 is a year long project of 10 presentations and 20 publications that aims to highlight the great moment Irish Photography is experiencing.
newirishworks.com
(Source: https://newirishworks.com/about/)
About the Publisher
PhotoIreland grows the reputation of Irish artists globally through a 360 degree support system and platform for contemporary photography, activated through a diversity of projects. These include events such as PhotoIreland Festival and Halftone print fair amongst others; resources such as the PhotoIreland Collection, a specialised research library of photobooks, and Ireland’s Art Bookshop, The Library Project; via publishing with projects such as OVER Journal and TLP Editions; professional development support through networking and consultancy opportunities; and empowering early and mid-career photographers via our international partnerships, most relevantly through Creative Europe co-funded platforms such as FUTURES and Parallel.
https://photoireland.org/
(Source: https://photoireland.org/about-photoireland/)
