Courses

Sorcha Fitzgerald

BA [Hons] Visual Communication Design

Hello! My Name is Sorcha and I am really happy to be a part of this years On Show at IADT. I have a strong interest in editorial design, spatial design and enjoy working across print and screen. I am passionate about socially conscious design and aim to create meaningful concepts grounded in real world context. Research and strategy are at the heart of my process and this allows me to be experimental in my image-making while remaining concept-focused. I like to work systematically when problem solving, telling stories through bold copywriting, balanced typography and playful visuals. Last year, I completed an amazing internship in the Berlin based studio Foundry!

Catharsis is a near future form of nightlife that is fully immersive and 100% substance free.

**Promotional Poster**. The gradient colour and fragmented shape highlight the different dimensions of the experience, while the movement of the shape bursting free from the poster symbolises how this event is breaking free of traditional nightlife conventions.

The QR code on the poster would bring you to the app. This video shows a walk-through of the onboarding process and profile set up.

This part of the app shows your biometric profile which is generated based off of the facial identification and inhibitions quiz.

When you arrive at your first Catharsis event, you will receive your Bio-Band. You scan the QR code to sync with your biometric profile on the app and track your cathartic release.

At the entrance of each room, there is an information panel explaining how the experience is curated through light and sound and how it will make you feel by stimulating specific neurochemicals.

Room 1: Unwind Your Mind. This room targets the neurochemical Glutamate to subdue your active brain and help you settle into the experience.

Room 2: Explore Your Space. This room targets the neurochemical Dopamine to reinforce positive behaviour and encourage you to be curious and seek new experiences.

Room 3: Move Your Body. This room targets the neurochemical Serotonin to boost self-confidence and motivate you to move outside your comfort zone.

Room 4: Release Your Inhibitions. This room targets the endorphin Adrenaline to increase stamina and focus, encouraging you to feel more present in the moment.

There is a mood enhancing drink assigned to each room which uses natural ingredients to reinforce the atmosphere being created by the external stimuli.

Motion reel showing the sequence of visuals for all four rooms.

Project Description

Catharsis is a multi-sensory and alcohol-free nightlife experience set in 2030. It challenges the traditional concept of a night-out and validates the growing desire among young people to drink less while acknowledging their unwavering need for an emotional escape from daily life. As an important rite of passage within youth culture, nightlife is essential in providing young adults with moments of freedom and the licence to let go. The future speculation of this project is grounded in academic research which predicts a 20% drop in alcohol consumption among young adults by 2040 as they become more conscious of their health and wellbeing. The cathartic experience triggers the same neurochemical reactions as alcohol using external stimuli such as light, sound and temperature. In this way, it replicates the physical and emotional sensations of being drunk without consuming any alcohol. Backed by science and grounded in human connection, it’s goal is to get people out of their head, into their body and create a space where they can lose their inhibitions.

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Thesis Title

Worker’s Rights are Women’s Rights: Intersections of Class, Race and Gender as Apparent in the Dunnes Stores Anti-Apartheid Strike 1984-1987

The Dunnes Stores Strike 1984-1987 was a consumer goods boycott carried out by a group of working class Irish women as a protest against the South African apartheid regime. It drew international attention to the suffering of black South African women under the trifold oppression of gender, class and race. This strike also highlighted the issue in the conscience of the Irish public. My thesis investigates the role of social movements in 1980’s Ireland and examines how this strike was a pivotal example of female activism within the Irish solidarity campaign. My thesis also aims to understand why such a significant moment in Irish social history has been largely omitted from the historical narrative, and aims to correct this. The themes and arguments presented are supported by visual evidence published by the various Anti-Apartheid Movements and photographs taken by the photojournalist Derek Spiers.

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