The fundamentality of the onion often goes unnoticed. An essential vegetable in Ireland for hundreds of years, the onion would have played a crucial role in the relief of hunger during the potato blight and subsequent Great Famine of the mid-19th century. The mundane onion becomes an extraordinary artefact through the use of porcelain and lace. Second Skin discusses themes such as domesticity, the overlooked, and cottage industry throughout Ireland. Soup kitchens and lace making were incredibly important industries in Ireland throughout the latter half of the 1800’s, once again providing women with an iota of independence in trying times.
