Irish Roots Festival to feature virtual celebration of mixed race heritage with DesignOpp

Not-for-profit initiative DesignOpp will be at the centre of what promises to be a fascinating discussion about creativity and design at the Irish Roots Festival's virtual event tomorrow, May 12th.

Irish Roots Festival, which is running all week, was curated by IAmIrish with the aim of celebrating mixed race heritage in Ireland. That is a central focus of tomorrow's discussion.

DesignOpp is partnered with the Institute of Designers in Ireland (IDI) with a purpose of championing diversity in Irish design, so that people of colour can fulfil their creative potential. The group focus on creating opportunities for people of colour, diversifying education and creating a community, with a directory featuring creatives of colour, to highlight the Black and POC talent available in Ireland.

“Being biracial myself I was delighted to collaborate with IAmIrish when they approached us," DesignOpp founding partner Grace Enemaku said of the free event.

"Mixed race identity is complex and highly individual to each person’s experience. There can often be hesitancy in immigrant families for children to approach a creative career due to a perceived lack of stability. We hope that highlighting the benefits of creativity, and our experiences, can change that misconception and show how rewarding a creative career can be."

Talented Singaporean-Irish muralist Holly Pereira has created a colourful mural on Charleville Mall, featuring her interpretation of mixed race identity. The artist's powerful pieces can be seen all over the capital, from the iconic Stoneybatter mural to her delicate hand-lettering in East Wall. Videographer Dan Dalton made sure to capture an uplifting time-lapse video of the artist at work.

“Ireland is now a vibrant, multi-ethnic and multicultural place," Pereira said of the beautiful new mural.

"This piece, specifically designed for Design Opp, is loosely based on Anna Livia, the name of a character in James Joyce's Finnegans Wake who is said to embody the River Liffey. I wanted to embrace the chance to update our understanding of what constitutes Irish identity; and to widen our lens of understanding and representation to include Irish people of dual ethnicities, mixed race and biracial heritage.”

DCC (Dublin City Council) have played a big role in the success of the DesignOpp project - supporting them through their launch event and providing a space and funding for Holly Pereira to create her piece.

The speakers at the DesignOpp event are all members of the diversity-seeking initiative, and include DesignOpp founder and brand strategist Greg Osbourne; founder and multidisciplinary designer Grace Enemaku; illustrator Ashwin Chacko; and muralist Holly Pereira. The speakers will talk about the benefits of design and creativity, as well as discussing how their multiracial identity has influenced their creative work.

This year's Irish Roots Festival theme is 'Agents of Change', with each day including performances and armchair talks, panels and videos celebrating Irish people of Dual heritage.

Today is all about Jude Hughes. On his 80th Birthday, the Irish Roots Festival will share info about his anti-racism work across the decades as well as having talks about the Mother and Baby Homes. Tomorrow, the festival will look ahead, preparing a round-table event with some of the major groups across the world who are working for better representation for Irish people of multi-ethnicity.

DesignOpp's free event will take place tomorrow at 5pm via the IAmIrish Youtube and Facebook channels.

Mural for @DesignOpp and @Iamblirish Roots Festival, kindly supported by @DubCityCouncil. Vid by Dan Dalton. Concept of mural is loosely based on Anna Livia, and seeks to reframe our understanding of what “Irish” looks like. #DesignOpp @IDIIreland #mural #hollypereira pic.twitter.com/zhogCeE6se

— Holly Pereira (@hollypereira81) May 10, 2021