OUR AIM:
Cearcall aims towards promoting indigenous language learning through stories rooted in the history and culture of place.
Weaving such stories to artworks produced by local artists, Cearcall aims to cultivate a culture which recognises the world we produce is always shaped by the stories which live inside of us.
Cearcall is a continued artistic research project aiming to fabulate a visual language for ecological futurism.
At present, with place based work rooted in Scotland, the central question Cearcall explores is:
What forms of Ecological futurism emerge when Celtic cultural traditions are re-imagined through socially engaged practice in a queer and multi-cultural Scotland?
Promoting the Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic (Gàidhlig) is the first language Cearcall is working with. Indigenous to Scotland, Gaelic carries within it centuries of poetry, ecological knowledge, storytelling and ways of understanding the world rooted in place. Yet it is also an endangered language that has endured profound historical oppression, including the suppression of Gaelic-speaking communities following the Highland Clearances and generations of educational policies that discouraged or punished its use. Despite these challenges, Gaelic continues to live and evolve through the dedication of speakers, educators and learners. According to Scotland’s 2022 Census, 69,701 people reported being able to speak Gaelic, while 130,161 people—around 2.5% of the population aged three and over—reported having some Gaelic skills. These figures offer both a reminder of the language’s fragility and a source of hope for its future. Cearcall is committed to contributing to this ongoing revival: creating meaningful, place-based experiences that support Gaelic learning, celebrate Gaelic culture, and help ensure that this remarkable language continues to be spoken, shared and cherished for generations to come.