The artwork looks at ‘unmasking’ and being your authentic self through a rewilding lens. Just as biodiversity flourishes when given space to grow, many neurodivergent people thrive in freedom. It draws parallels between the two, highlighting how patterns in nature reflect neurodivergent ways of moving through the world.

Within the space, you’ll experience a multi-sensory trove of nature’s abundant offerings that provide gentle stimulation and boost calmness. Foraged from the rich diversity of Ireland for the diverse minds of Ireland, allow yourself to be guided by your curious senses. 

Throughout the space there are places for you to sit, rest and burrow your way into acorns, concors, pinecones and much much more. Let your hands wander and regulate your body’s rhythm by ‘stimming’ with nature.

Our society, which often demands conformity, causes many people to mask their true selves. Nature offers radical relief: acceptance without judgment and unconditional belonging. Neurodivergence and biodiversity can both thrive with the freedom to grow. Every tangle of roots, mossy stone and blooming Dandelion is not just a biodiversity success signal, but a metaphor for the vibrancy of neurodiversity. 

One of the ways this project embraces both aspects is by foraging for senses. Being free from the need to mask or adapt to neurotypical expectations supports sensory regulation and boosts calmness and creativity. We explore how natural environments proffer a sense of ease and belonging within them. Visitors are urged to open themselves up to what’s often overlooked, to experience nature’s richness from a different vantage point, and to break free from the confining patterns that shape how we sense, move and feel our way through the world.

Unmasking Nature looks beneath moss and mulch to acknowledge our world that is full of small and mighty forms, where sinkholes are not dead spaces, but connected wells of creativity and resilience. The project challenges us to reconsider biases that favour the visible and the normative; it’s a call to embrace difference as essential to the fabric of life.