Reflecting on our material relations with objects, through processes of fixing and mending. ‘Turning the Collar’ takes the form of a road trip around the rural county of Westmeath, Ireland. On the journey craft, restoration, and repair professionals speak about their work. Touching on the values that underpin what we choose to care for and mend, the ‘Turning the Collar’ highlights the poetic and situated nature of such work and the joys and struggles that skilled trade professions now face. Closing reflections speak to planned obsolescence, the global Right to Repair movement and associated changes in law and legislation.
Director/Narrator: Teresa Dillon. Camera/Editing: Matt Boyd. Sound: Gareth Anton Averill. Graphic Inserts: Marta Celio. Produced: Repair Acts, Ireland, Alma Clavin, University College Dublin. Funded: Creative Irelands’ Climate Actions Programme, 2022-23. Partners: University College Dublin & Westmeath County Council. Supported by: DCRC & School of Art and Design, University of the West of England.