WE ONLY WANT THE EARTH
WOWTE is an ongoing programme of politically and socially engaged arts activities, and is intended as a broad conversation about the goals and strategies of social change:
What kind of society do we want and how should we get there?
The context for We Only Want the Earth is ongoing, unpredictable social change. The perceived legitimacy of international institutions and international law is collapsing. Climate change is accelerating, and the border regimes of the countries that have benefitted the most from its causes are increasingly violent, preventing escape for those suffering the worst of its effects. Ireland participates as a junior partner in and beneficiary of Western imperialism, at the cost of much of its sovereignty; popular legislation aligned with international law cannot be enacted due to a fear of the US response, while Irish neutrality is ever closer to being dismantled despite broad public opposition. Domestically, the crises of inequality, cost of living, and homelessness continue to worsen.
We are living through Gramsci’s interregnum: the old world is dying and the new world struggles to be born. New opportunities for radical social change present themselves, but they are accompanied by reactionary violence that seeks to return to an imagined idyllic past. In this context, deliberative and discursive arts practices are urgently needed.
THE PROGRAMME
Applications are now open for two funded residency awards.
Please follow the link below to read our guidelines and to make an application.
THE COMMON THREAD SERIES
A full list of groups and artists we have worked can be found on our archive page and WeOnlyWantThe.Earth
GROUP EXHIBITION
Our 2026 open call will be announced soon!
THE TEAM
THE A4 TEAM
Our team includes programe and studio staff and a technical team offering supports to artists at every stage of the arts prodcution cycle including mentoring, ideas and skills development, experimentation, dissemination, and documentation.
OUR PARTNERS
We work with a wide range of partners to develop and deliver its activites. These include art organisations, community organisations, and grass roots activist groups. We are committed to developing new relationships with groups nationally and interantionally.
If you would like to collaborate with us on our programme please get in touch with us here!
CONSULTING ARTISTS
We work with artists and collectives who are have critical arts practices exploring themes related to the programme. These artists use a diverse range of disciplines and approaches in the production of their work. We are committed to establishing long-term working relationships with artists and developing new relationships each year.
If you would like to collaborate with us or you feel your work would fit well in our programme please get in touch here!
PROGRAMME ARCHIVE
Visit the WOWTE website to learn more about the programme’s exhibitions, events and particpating artists.
Our website showcases the online and digital dissemination of the programme, as well as archiving all programme outcomes .
Since 2021 an accompanying website for each solo exhibtion was designed and built by Lucia Poliakova. These websites are intended to be digital experiences for audiences beyond the physical gallery. Each website is live for one year and then archived on WeOnlyWantThe.Earth
A similar approach is taken for our group shows where video works are broadcast and audio works are commissioned including audio tours and mixtapes.
Over the next year we will be archiving all work produced since 2020 including our Common Thread events.
While we get all our work added to the WOWTE website you can see a full list of the programme outcomes, and artists and groups we have worked with on our archive page.
We Only Want the Earth is kindly supported by The Arts Council’s Art Grant Funding 2020-2026