sexual encounters in public spaces, which has long been a crucial aspect of queer life, born from necessity in an era where homosexuality was criminalised. Through oral histories and mapping, the project traces the experiences of older queer men who navigated this clandestine world in the 1970s and 1980s. Our methodology is both archival and interactive. We use a 1980s tourist map of Cork as a base, layering it with tracing paper to document interviewees’ recollections of cruising sites, routes, customs, and the evolving dynamics of these spaces. These interviews create a palimpsest of queer memory, revealing how public and private space intertwine in the lives of LGBTQ+ individuals. My role as an architectural researcher is to map these narratives, indexing them to form a comparative tool that allows us to visualise patterns of movement, activity levels, and cultural shifts. As Plotting Pleasure continues to develop, new layers of understanding emerge. The conversations sparked by these maps provide insights not only into the past but also into how queer space functions today. By cartographically revisiting these locations with the individuals who once used them, the project sheds light on the endurance of queer sociality, the impact of legal and societal changes, and the spaces that still operate under the radar. THE ETHICS OF PRESERVATION AND PUBLICATION As I continue this work, one of the most pressing challenges is determining how to share the information responsibly. Many of the cruising sites mapped through Plotting Pleasure remain active today. While there is immense value in preserving and documenting queer history, the safety and privacy of those who continue to use these spaces must come first. This ethical dilemma is central to Oileán Aiteach’s ongoing development. How do we balance historical documentation with the need to protect vulnerable communities? One approach I hope to explore is to anonymise locations, focusing on broader spatial patterns rather than specific geographies.
Another is to explore non-traditional modes of dissemination, using artistic installations and interactive exhibitions rather than widely accessible publications. The goal is to create a living archive, one that respects the complexities of queer space and its users while ensuring these histories do not disappear. The discussion around how to ethically share this research continues to evolve. In some cases, histories may remain unpublished or restricted to specific audiences, ensuring that documentation does not inadvertently expose spaces that need to remain hidden. Striking this balance is a continuous challenge, but it is one that must be met with diligence and respect. LOOKING FORWARD Oileán Aiteach is just the beginning of a larger inquiry into the relationship between queer identity and the built environment in Ireland. By combining research, oral history, and artistic reconstruction, the project seeks to bridge the past and present, honoring the resilience of LGBTQ+ spaces while questioning their future. Queer space has always been adaptable, shaped by resistance, community, and the ever-changing landscape of societal norms. Through Oileán Aiteach, I hope to continue uncovering and celebrating these histories, ensuring that Ireland’s queer past remains visible, relevant, and protected. The project will evolve with each new story, each new discovery, and each new collaboration, reinforcing the importance of spatial memory in the ongoing fight for queer visibility and rights.
demonstrations and public outcry about the importance of protecting queer spaces. The closure of venues sparked conversations about the erasure of LGBTQ+ spaces and the need to actively preserve their histories. Seeing the community rally in response reinforced the urgency of documenting queer environments before they disappear entirely. This energy became a driving force for Oileán Aiteach, inspiring me to examine both lost and existing spaces through research, artistic reconstruction, and oral history. RECONSTRUCTING LOST SPACES Through funding from the Arts Council’s Agility Award, I have been able to explore my artistic practice, experimenting with traditional forms of architectural documentation that combine photography, collage, and 3D modeling to capture spaces often lost to history. One of these experiments is a digital reconstruction of the backroom of Loafers Bar, one of Ireland’s longest- running LGBTQ+ venues, and a hub of Lesbian social activity particularly on Thursday night. Using video footage, photographs, and oral histories, I am in the process of rebuilding this lost space, giving physical form to a site that held immense community significance. These reconstructions are not just acts of nostalgia but tools of resistance that assert the presence of queer lives in Ireland’s architectural and cultural history. With each new layer of archival material and testimony, the reconstruction of the backroom continues to grow in complexity, uncovering details that shape a more nuanced understanding of how these spaces operated. Rather than being fixed historical records, these reconstructions invite reflection and reinterpretation, ensuring that the memories of these spaces do not remain static but continue to be engaged with by the community.
OILEÁN AITEACH: MAPPING QUEER MEMORY IN IRELAND
Darren Ó Conchúir (he/him)
meeting with Orla Egan, the force behind Cork LGBT Archive, during a heritage week walking tour. Through this experience, I learned about the layers of Cork’s queer history and the spaces they occupied, which led to a year of volunteering and later working as the Operations Admin Officer with the archive. Through this work, I saw firsthand how preserving queer history can empower a community, illuminating the lives and struggles of those who came before us. My volunteering allowed me to contribute to the dissemination of these stories by facilitating a part of the Cork LGBT Archive walking tour, describing the once fabulous ‘The Other Place.’ Another significant motivation for this work came from the activism that followed the loss of a queer space in Cork City, which led to large-scale
THE BEGINNINGS OF OILEÁN AITEACH This project emerged from my undergraduate dissertation, where I explored the complex relationship between queer communities and the spaces they occupied in Ireland. Public sentiment and legislation have long dictated the visibility of these spaces, shaping where queer people could safely exist. Memory and archive play a crucial role in preserving these histories, and through Oileán Aiteach, a physical manifestation of my art and research practice, I aim to contribute to the preservation of these stories.
SOCIALS Instagram: @oileanaiteach
Queer spaces in Ireland have always been fragile, shaped by resilience, secrecy, and the shifting tides of social and legal change. Oileán Aiteach (Queer Island) began as a response to this history, an exploration of how LGBTQ+ identities have interacted with the built environment across time. As an architectural researcher and artist, my goal is to document and dissect the remnants of these spaces, uncovering narratives that still resonate today.
PLOTTING PLEASURE One of the most significant
collaborations within this broader research journey has been Plotting Pleasure, a multidisciplinary project that investigates historical cruising grounds in Cork. This collaboration with Cork LGBT Archive aims to document cruising, the act of seeking anonymous
My first encounter with queer histories and the built environment was a chance
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