Bring Your Own Chair was an arts participation project and portrait of twelve rural towns in counties Waterford, Wexford and Kilkenny led by visual artist Michelle Browne and produced by Workhouse Union.

As the heart of small towns in Ireland faces decline, the project explored shared collective experiences using public space for community gatherings and actions. The project unfolded in four stages: Artist Paul Bokslag delivered Town Motif workshops in schools in the twelve towns. The workshops used papercuts to focus on each town's built and natural heritage. Michelle Browne and the BYOC team led a series of Town Visits centred on participatory workshops through group mapping exercises, individual questionnaires and spatial games. 

Three Irish and European designers undertook Design Residencies with the Design and Craft Council of Ireland. Amber Perng and Kaye Toland, Rosie O'Reilly, Luis Vega and paired with local host artists. The designers were hosted by local artists within the specific context of rural towns, engaging with the locales' vernacular craft and design history Molly A King, Sarah Lincoln, Deirdre O'Mahony. Bring Your Own Chair culminated with bespoke events in the towns to create a portrait of the rural Southeast.

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