The Tallest (2017 participatory project for families)

Mamoru Iriguchi: Concept, Design

Robbie Synge: Collaborative Artist

commissioned by Tate Early Years & Families, supported by Imaginate

Brief description: 

The Tallest is a participatory project where a child and an adult are encouraged to create a very tall person. It asks the child to sit on their parent/guardian’s shoulders, then wraps them with a specially designed cloak. The Tallest offers a new viewpoint, movement and personality of a very tall person for the participating children (and grown-ups). The project also helps shift the usual relationship between children and adults as well as realising a surreal landscape in the space (indoor or outdoor) where a number of very tall people are to roam. 

The tallest was originally commissioned by the Tate Early Years and Families for their Family Festival, for the Henry Moore gallery in order to encourage children to appreciate sculptural work by changing their viewpoints. The project can be tailored differently for spaces. The cloaks can also be designed for specific occasions/narrative to respond the site.   

Presented at: Tate Britain, Edinburgh International Children’s Festival (Open Weekend at the National Museum of Scotland), Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Kanazawa 21st Century Museum (Japan), Glasgow Canal Festival, The Ark (Dublin)