HomePlace Opening

This week sees the opening of the Seamus Heaney HomePlace in Bellaghy – the arts and literary centre dedicated to the life, literature and inspirations of the poet and Nobel Laureate.

We at Tandem are both delighted and immensely proud to have been the interpretive design team behind the permanent exhibition ‘Man & Boy’, a central component of HomePlace, that reveals the life and work of one of our greatest poets.

This project presented unique challenges for us: to interpret both the poet and the man in ways that appeal to both specialists and general audiences, as well as unpicking and imagining the sources of his inspiration. At the same time we wanted to encourage visitors to engage with poetry in their own ways and feed their personal creative impulses.

We set out to interpret the inspiration and form of his poetry for visitors of all ages and backgrounds, using a range of multi-sensory techniques – visual, aural and tactile. Throughout the project we worked closely with the Heaney family to display personal artefacts, photographs and publications in a sensitive and engaging way, allowing visitors to fully immerse themselves in Heaney’s world.

Seamus Heaney’s gift for making the ordinary extraordinary resonated with people from all walks of life – his poems were both grounded and eternally profound. We hope you get a chance to visit; to listen to Heaney’s voice reading his poems in the place where they took root; and, maybe, to be inspired to create something of your own.

A selection of comments from visitors to the HomePlace:

“The Homeplace is authentic, thought provoking, poignant, fully immersive and emotive … although I only spent half the day there, could absolutely spend a full day there taking all of this interactive exhibit in. I look forward to returning.”

“The creative corner is superb. Great to hear an author read his own poems.”

“A fitting home for a much-loved poet.”

For more information please visit www.seamusheaneyhome.com