New installation in Limerick park has people scratching their heads
A NEW PECULIAR item is coming to People’s Park in the city, which has sparked public interest.
Poetry Jukebox, by arts production company Quotidian - Word on the Street Ltd, is an international project which sees the temporary installation of a steel structure shaped gramophone in a public space.
A button on the gramophone, when pressed, will allow members of the public to hear a poet read their own poem aloud through a speaker. It is a free amenity which the Limerick public will now be able to use up until July.
The Poetry Jukebox was first installed in Ireland at the Belfast International Festival in 2017. From Tuesday, May 16 there will be one available to use in the People’s Park in Limerick city.
Ten brand new commissions, inspired by the history of the War of Independence and the Civil War, feature at the Limerick jukebox. There will be a total of 20 different poems to choose from, with poets reciting their own work.
The project is in association with Poetry as Commemoration (PaC), a University College Dublin library initiative, as well as Poetry Ireland, the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sports and Media.
The aim of the Poetry Jukebox is to bring literature to cities for the people who live there to enjoy in their everyday lives. Founder and Artistic Director of Quotidian - Word on the Street Ltd, Maria McManus, said that the jukebox is “putting literature where it belongs: everywhere, for everybody”.