Artists Inspirations – Feltmakers Ireland

Recap: Artists’ Creative Journeys for ‘Symbols of Ireland’ Exhibition

Published on Mar 13, 2025 by Feltmakers Ireland

On Sunday, the 9th of March, a dedicated group of twenty Feltmakers Ireland members attended our Sunday Session. Five members joined the rest of us via Zoom. We enjoyed learning about the processes and challenges of creating artwork for our exhibition, ‘Symbols of Ireland’.

The nine artists discussed techniques such as wet felting, needle felting, free-motion stitching, hand embroidery, stiffeners, and mixed media and shared their challenges.

In order of appearance –

Marie Hopkins

Guild member Marie Hopkins shared about creating her detailed cottage scene, ‘An Tigín’, which contains wet and needle felting techniques and even a bit of woodworking! She has a background in architectural model-making, which is clearly demonstrated in all the tiny details.

Marie Hopkins – March Sunday Session
Marie Hopkins- showing the wool collected from the Curragh plains in Co Kildare, and processed by friends.

Elizabeth Redding

Committee member Elizabeth Redding used Romney wool from her neighbour, Minister Pippa Hackett. Initially, she wanted to use the ‘cracked mud technique’, but then her design evolved, and she used a combination of wet felting for the base and needle felting for the details. She dyed her wool using instructions from the guild’s book ‘Exploring Irish Wool for Feltmaking’ instructions.

Photo of Elizabeth’s piece with a rough sketch and a version of her needlefelted cottage in the foreground.

Annika Berglund

In October, committee member Annika Berglund attended an in-person workshop with tutor Gladys Paulus. The students focussed on perfecting the wet-felting technique of their choice; Annika chose the ‘Cracked Mud Technique’. She said that previously, the “Edges {of her samples} were not nice”. Using knowledge gained in the workshop, she created a segment of pieces for her solo show, ‘Tapestry‘, at the Olivier Cornet Gallery, which was exhibited in November 2024.

In addition to showing us squares with the cracked mud technique, she shared a very finished-looking circular sample. She did not submit the completed version of this piece because it was slightly larger (by 2 centimetres) than the maximum width requirement for submissions.

Eva Salamon

Guild member Eva Salamon generously brought many sketches, partial samples, armatures, a completed sculpture, and photographs to show her process. Her piece is needle felted, with the fairy’s cloak being wet felted. It is genuinely a mixed-media artwork, which fascinated us.

She explained how she no longer needs to plan as much as did when she was still learning.

Lorna Cady

Committee member Lorna Cady had us laughing at what she didn’t finish in time to submit to the exhibition. Many of us can relate to her ‘Mislaid Plans’ for the past three years. Her current project, ‘Soft Border,’ is a piece she started while invigilating at the exhibition.

Amanda Robinson Kelly

Guild member Amanda Robinson Kelly explained that she has previously created many pieces using free-motion stitching. For this technique, she uses dissolvable backing, fabric, and thread. For her exhibition piece, she included felting and used the wool roving on hand, fortuitously in the colours of the Irish flag.

Fiona Leech

Guild member Fiona Leech amazed us with the scale of her resist, which was made from thin underfloor laminate. Her fibres encased it for her most ambitious project yet. Fiona’s vessel features six layers of wet-felted Galway carded wool from Cushendale Woollen Mills. The piece was so large that she had to rinse out the soap in the bathtub, and it took a whole week to dry!

Juliane Gorman

Committee member Juliane Gorman shared how sometimes it is necessary to change one’s design. Because she included lots of thick felt in the bottom half of her double brim, she was unable to shrink it down. So, she had to chop it off and hand-sew in millinery wire to make it work.

Juliane shows us the resist she used is the same as the one for the hat she is wearing.

Helena Mc Guinness

Guild member Helena Mc Guinness shared how she combined raw wool from Carlow with other types of wool to create her piece. She worked on her needlefelted project while she was travelling and received many curious questions!

Apologies: The photographer forgot to take photos while Helena presented her work.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Sunday Session was a celebration of creativity and a rich exchange of knowledge and inspiration. From discovering new materials and techniques to learning about hidden resources like free creative spaces in local libraries, everyone left with fresh ideas and valuable connections. Special thanks to Helena McGuinness for sharing her experience creating art in the reservable rooms of Ballyfermot Library—proof that feltmaking can flourish in the most unexpected places.

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Questions: For questions about content, please follow the link to the organisation involved in hosting the event.

Exhibition: Opposites Attract – Inspiration

Published on May 23, 2024May 29, 2024 by Feltmakers Ireland7 Comments

This is the final instalment of Feltmakers Ireland artists’ inspiration towards the ‘Opposites Attract’ theme.

The Series

The complete series of posts on our Members’ Inspiration can be found here:

Irina Lampadova

Success and Failure are the products of the same process.

I enjoy the magical process of felting. Experimenting with different colours, mixing and blending of natural little fibres that are joined together into an inseparable fabric gives a feeling of mindfulness and satisfaction.

Karena Ryan

‘Eclipsed’ represents a time to bask in the glow – be luminous.

Over 5000 years ago our ancient Irish astronomers were predicting solar eclipses and welcomed this festival of light with the world’s oldest known solar eclipse carved on stone megaliths at Loughcrew Cairn, County Meath. What may have been important has been overshadowed by what actually matters and what now radiates are new opportunities and fresh beginnings.

Annika Berglund

In life, between birth and death, we experience many ups and downs; we feel joy and despair.

However much we would like to only have the good times, they would not be the same if things were never bad. Achievement is not as satisfying without the risk of failure.

Focussing on the positive but accepting the balance of opposing forces in our lives might be a path to harmony and growth.

Marie Dunne

The volcanic eruption on the Reykjanes peninsula in Iceland in March 2024 was the inspiration for my piece ‘Lava Flow’. Hot and Cold. Fire and Ice.

Elaine Peden

“A life lived in colour where there is “”no opposite””. I am currently investigating the abstraction of the idea of ‘Opposite’, looking at the absence of colour.

How colour can create an emotional response and when colour is blended.

‘Opposite’ becomes ‘One'”

Marika Miklosi Manning

The challenge here was to combine felt work with another material of opposing characteristics and create a harmonious piece of work. I chose nylon string 0.50mm thick/ 12kg, usually used for suspending objects or fishing, etc. I see this piece as a study to see how the two materials can be combined to complement each other. The soft felt as a background to the qualities of the unyielding nylon string, which, through that combination, creates patterns of transparent 3D circles.

We hope that you enjoyed learning about what inspires these artists. ‘Opposites Attract’ is at the Phoenix Park Visitors Centre until the 26th of May.

The gallery is open from 10 AM to 4 PM daily. On Sunday, the 26th the show closes at 2 PM.

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about content, please follow the link to the organisation involved in hosting the event.

Exhibition: Artists’ Inspiration – Opposites Attract

Published on May 22, 2024May 29, 2024 by Feltmakers Ireland6 Comments

Each artist in the ‘Opposites Attract’ exhibition interpreted the theme uniquely.

The Series

The complete series of posts on our Members’ Inspiration can be found here:

Valerie Nowak-O’Ceallaigh

Without opposites, there is no life
For without darkness, there is no light
For without roughness, there is no softness
For without inside, there is no outside
For without rain, there is no rainbow.
Opposites attract to create life

My piece is created to surprise, intrigue and engage the visitors. Each visitor is encouraged to use their flashlight to investigate the inside of the wool felted tunnel. They will then discover the harbour of Dalkey under a rainbow after the rain. The front of the frame is voluntarily dark to reveal an explosion of colours while you venture inside. Using those contrasts, I show how opposites attract and create a new dimension.

Helena Mc Guinness

‘Opposites Attract’- based on a raindrop caught between two weather fronts. A storm on one side of the piece and bright sunshine on the other. A rainbow forms, made up of many raindrops. In this piece, ‘The Eye Of The Storm’, we see a double rainbow. So joyous in the sky!

Eithne O’Dea

When I thought about the exhibition theme, ‘Opposites Attract’, the term ‘Night and Day’ came into my mind- you can’t have one without the other. The recent solar eclipse developed this thought further, and the fanciful image of the Moon passing the Sun was born!

Eva Salamon

Something new is always born out of decay: Death follows Life, and Life follows Death…

These two elements are constantly at work, form an eternal cycle, drawn to each other because they cannot exist without one another…

I dedicate this piece/artwork to my mother, who just returned to this cycle.

Juliane Gorman

My artwork, ‘Balancing’, delves into the dual nature of our dependence on oil. Just as opposites attract, our reliance on oil draws us in with promises of convenience, power, and economic prosperity while simultaneously repelling us with the ecological devastation and social inequality it perpetuates. Through my piece of felted headwear, I encourage reflection on this complex relationship and the need for sustainability.

We hope that you enjoyed learning about what inspires these artists. ‘Opposites Attract’ is at the Phoenix Park Visitors Centre until the 26th of May.

The gallery is open from 10 AM until 4 PM daily.

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about content, please follow the link to the organisation involved in hosting the event.

Exhibition: More Members’ Inspirations

Published on May 21, 2024May 29, 2024 by Feltmakers Ireland6 Comments

What inspires an artist? Read on to discover how the theme ‘Opposites Attract’ inspired these Feltmakers Ireland members.

The Series

The complete series of posts on our Members’ Inspiration can be found here:

Jane Fox

The idea of creating a moth in wool came about after I was thinking about what the opposite of feltmaking is and what do textile artists really dislike or fear.

Many people are only familiar with the clothes moth (Tineola bisselliella) or house moth (Endrosis sarcitrella) but don’t realise that there are over 1400 species of moths in Ireland, including the beautiful Garden Tiger (Arctia caja). Only two of these moths will eat your clothes. Many are large and colourful but only come out at night, so they are seldom seen.

Sadly, there is a trend towards the use of plastic grass, non-native plants and paving, which has led to a significant decline in these important pollinators.

Elizabeth Redding

I chose the theme of ‘Day and Night’ as opposites, as each attracts their own. The daytime sun attracts butterflies, bees, birds, and flowers. The moon at night attracts many nocturnal animals and birds.

Joanne Foley

In my felt art for this ‘Opposites Attract’ exhibition, l explored the profound bond that l had with my beloved dog Pebbles, who sadly passed away a year ago. Upon her passing, l preserved a portion of her fur with the intention of some day crafting a poignant felted portrait which l would felt her fur into.

The theme of this exhibition resonated deeply with me, providing the perfect impetus to embark on this heartfelt creation.

Unlike the docile nature of sheep, Pebbles was a spirited and independent soul, who possessed an unwavering individuality. She was very much her own ‘dog’ and would make up her mind very determinedly about what other canines she liked and didn’t, much to my great embarrassment.

This piece serves as a testament to her beautiful, unique character and is a tribute to my cherished companion, Pebbles, who touched my life in so many ways and whom I miss dearly.

Sandra Chase

These best friends have very different, even opposite personalities. The dog chases, and the cat runs. On arrival home, the dog shows excitement of your return by jumping, dancing in circles, and paying you lots of attention. The cat will show you that she appreciates your presence but in a quieter, less excited way. In the right environment, they put their differences aside and become Best Friends.

Loli Cox

‘Yin Yang Ewe’ was inspired by the belief that everything in the universe consists of two forces that are opposing but complementary. One cannot exist without the other, but together, the black and white sheep create an idyllic Irish countryside.

We hope that you enjoyed learning about what inspires these artists. ‘Opposites Attract’ is at the Phoenix Park Visitors Centre until the 26th of May.

The gallery is open from 10 AM until 4 PM daily.

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about content, please follow the link to the organisation involved in hosting the event.

Exhibition: Opposites Attract Inspiration

Published on May 19, 2024May 29, 2024 by Feltmakers Ireland7 Comments

The art exhibition ‘Opposites Attract’ features pieces by 38 Feltmakers Ireland members. Each artist interpreted the theme in her own way. Read on to find out their inspiration.

The Series

The complete series of posts on our Members’ Inspiration can be found here:

Claire Merry

All things in the universe exist as inseparable and contrasting opposites. My piece represents yin-yang as equal opposites that attract and complement each other. Never connecting but always balanced.

Caitríona Nolan

The title of the exhibition, ‘Opposites Attract’, made me think of colours that bounce off each other but also work well together and are eye-catching. Red and green are opposite each other on the colour wheel. The saying that came to mind goes, ‘Red and green should never be seen except upon an Irish Queen’.

Margaret Ryan Collins

‘Spirals of Life’ is influenced by the double spirals found at Brú na Bóinne (Newgrange) and on other ancient Irish monuments. These spirals are seen as a representation of balance between two opposing but inextricably linked factors, eg life and death, light and dark, creation and destruction, day and night, as in our theme, ‘Opposites Attract’. So, my interpretation wants to show the link to the theme in a similar fashion, to that demonstrated by our forefathers and foremothers.

Caoimhe Tuthill

The continuous flow and change of the River Boyne as it passes the Neolithic monuments of Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth.

These spectacular structures have proudly stood in the Boyne Valley landscape for over 5000 years.

Our ancestors utilized the river’s ebb and flow to skilfully transport these megaliths to their sacred sites in County Meath.

The shawl’s design features the megalithic art carved into Newgrange’s entrance stone and the various shades of blue signify the meandering course of the River Boyne as it flows out to sea.

Immersing ourselves in nature reminds us of our ancient and spiritual connection and our deep interdependence to the earth, sky, water, land, rocks, stars, moon, and sun.

Fiona Leech

Sometimes in life we get thrown a curve ball that can cause disruption and chaos. When this happens, I try to weave some calmness into my life by hanging out with nature. I tried to show this by using the intensity of reds, oranges and dark, urban colours in contrast with the lightness of greens and yellows found in nature around us.

We hope that you enjoyed learning about what inspires these artists. ‘Opposites Attract’ is at the Phoenix Park Visitors Centre until the 26th of May.

The gallery is open from 10 AM until 4 PM daily.

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about content, please follow the link to the organisation involved in hosting the event.

Exhibition: More Artists’ Inspiration to ‘Opposites Attract’

Published on May 18, 2024May 29, 2024 by Feltmakers Ireland7 Comments

This year, Feltmakers Ireland’s annual art exhibition at the Phoenix Park Visitors’ Centre is curated around the theme of ‘Opposites Attract’. Within the gallery, wall placards explain each piece’s inspiration. For those who cannot make it to the show, here are the inspiration and photographs of some more of our members’ artwork.

The Series

The complete series of posts on our Members’ Inspiration can be found here:

Heather Byrne

Two jellyfish gracefully dance amidst contrasting currents, embodying the timeless adage of ‘Opposites Attract’. Their ethereal forms, pulsating with contrasting vibrant hues, symbolise the harmony found in embracing differences. Through their delicate movements, the felting invites viewers to contemplate the beauty that emerges when opposing forces unite in a mesmerising display of elegance and synchronicity.

Tamzen Lundy

This piece was inspired by Tamzen’s “spiritual” home of Co. Donegal and a recent trip to a windswept cliff top, Horn Head, Dunfanaghy.

People often refer to Donegal as the county where “The land meets the sea”. The vistas are immense, and the sky is vast. However, there are also wonderful tiny landscapes in every rockpool, to be found, examined and explored. This piece is inspired by such a landscape.

By using colours from opposite sides of the colour wheel and fibres from both animal and insect, the artist has interpreted the land and sea and how these opposites attract.”

Bernie Hennessy

Coral’s skeletal structure is transparent; it gets its vibrant colour from an algae inhabitant called zooxanthellae, with which it exists in a symbiotic relationship. In my work ‘Tabulata’, I use merino fleece to express the vulnerability of the algae and porcelain to represent the structure of the coral. In doing so, I hope to convey how two opposing elements of nature, the delicate, colourful algae and the strong, transparent coral, neither of which can live independently, can be attracted to each other to form a symbiotic relationship, which results in such a wonder of nature.

Adrienne Dempsey

My piece illustrates the concept of opposites attract within relationships and the lyrics of a classic love song, “Just the Two of Us” by Grover Washington Jr. with Bill Withers.

The opening lines of the song set the scene for the rest of the lyrics. “I see the crystal raindrops fall, and the beauty of it all is when the sun comes shining through.” These lyrics set up the idea that everything in life has its ups and downs, but the beauty of it all is when the sun shines through.

The meaning behind the song is ultimately about love and the importance of relationships. How differences can create a magnetic attraction between two people.

Joanne Turner

When I thought about the theme ‘Opposites Attract’, I was drawn to the antithetical parallelism of proverbs in the Bible. My piece illustrates the dynamic energy of opposites: earth & sky; blue & yellow; throwing away & gathering together. Could it be that the key to a happy life is as simple as knowing when to jettison our ‘stones’ and when to hold them close?

We hope that you enjoyed learning about what inspires these artists. This series on the exhibition will continue over the coming week. ‘Opposites Attract’ is at the Phoenix Park Visitors Centre until the 26th of May.

The gallery is open from 10 AM until 4 PM daily.

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about content, please follow the link to the organisation involved in hosting the event.

Exhibition: Inspiration Behind More Artworks

Published on May 13, 2024May 29, 2024 by Feltmakers Ireland7 Comments

Feltmakers Ireland’s art exhibition at the Phoenix Park Visitors’ Centre is curated around the ‘Opposites Attract’ theme this year. In the gallery, you can read about each piece’s inspiration. For those who cannot make it to the show, here are the inspiration and photographs of some more of our members’ artwork.

The Series

The complete series of posts on our Members’ Inspiration can be found here:

Astrid Tomrop-Hofmann

The inspiration for the vessel ‘Roulette’ comes from the overthrow of nature with its diversity.

Light, Movement, Smells and Sounds play a major role in the development and implementation of my ideas!

There is so much to see and explore; you just have to look out for it. Enjoy discovering my vessels!

Breda Fay

I liked the balance of black and white. The magnetism was added after playing a game with my grandson. Does it attract/repel?

Lory Cotti Cottini

Separation/Union, Fragments/Whole form, in between Emotions and Shades, create my artistic works.

Neasa Ryan

For ‘Moondance’, dark alien-like figures/faces sprung to mind, however as the piece evolved, with the addition of curved stems slightly revealing the dark colour underneath, I felt it provided a slightly softer feel to the piece, and it reminded me of gaunt alien type flowers or emaciated alien forms. Either way, with the cloudy white background, the Van Morrison song ‘Moondance’ sprung to mind, and I felt it was an apt name for the piece. In such an inhospitable environment, devoid of life as we know it, what could be more opposite (yet attractive) than flowers on the moon or flowers /alien forms dancing harmoniously on the moonscape for that matter?

Ramona Farrelly

‘Ebb and flow’ is a childhood memory of climbing in and around the rock pools at various beaches I spent my summers with my cousins on the east coast shores of Dublin and Wicklow. The creatures living on these rocks and in these pools fascinated me. Half in water, half out, the water changes their environment and how they look. The limpets clinging tightly to the rocks, as well as the sea urchins, took up lots of my childhood curiosity.

Ursula Heiting-Wiese

The combination of soft silk and (considerably) rough wool that transforms into something completely new with Nuno felting is the perfect interpretation of the theme for me. To emphasise the opposites further, I chose black and white and open and closed parts with a ‘holey’ scarf.

We hope that you enjoyed learning about what inspires these artists. This series on the exhibition will continue over the coming weeks. ‘Opposites Attract’ is at the Phoenix Park Visitors Centre until the 26th of May.

The gallery is open from 10 AM until 4 PM daily.

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about content, please follow the link to the organisation involved in hosting the event.

Exhibition: ‘Opposites Attract’ – the Inspiration

Published on May 9, 2024May 29, 2024 by Feltmakers Ireland8 Comments

Feltmakers Ireland chooses a theme for each of our annual exhibitions. Last year’s theme was ‘Bountiful’, and the year before, it was ‘Building Bridges’. This year’s theme is ‘Opposites Attract’.

Having a theme can be both inspiring or constraining, depending upon the individual artist. Sometimes, both emotions are experienced within a member as she works through the feltmaking process!

In today’s blog post, we share six of our members’ pieces and how they interpreted ‘Opposites Attract’.

The Series

The complete series of posts on our Members’ Inspiration can be found here:

Sandra Reynolds

My piece is inspired by the forces of the moon and its effects on nature. The opposites of light and dark, the power of electricity, and the magnetic forces surrounding us.

Sandra Coote

2024, the year it rained continuously, but on occasion, the sun peeped through to produce the most magnificent of rainbows. ‘Nature’s Duet’ brightly represents this occurrence when the opposites of our weather come together harmoniously to create a spectacular spectrum of colour.

Patricia Conroy

This piece is inspired by a sunset in Doolin in April 2024. It depicts the beauty that dark and bright can create. The hills are black, but as a result the beauty of nature’s contrasts can be experienced.

Nature provides us with opposites that attract and that go together to create the beauty we see every day.

Hélène Dooley

Nature is truly magnificent and packed with contradictions!

While hiking in the foothills of Mount Cook, NZ, the clouds disappeared, and we were treated to the most stunning and, according to locals, a rare view of the mountain. There were so many opposing elements: the light and dark of the mountain range, our presence in a lush and colourful terrain against a stark mountain backdrop, the permanence of this young mountain range compared to the transience of the flora surrounding us, the differing temperatures which were governed by height. Fragility surrounded us, yet there was a certain reassurance that the mountain would prevail in spite of humanity’s destructive decisions.

Maria McGarry

On the 21st of December 2023, as the dawn broke in Newgrange, we witnessed dazzling rainbow clouds, and I could see a dove form through the clouds. Spiritually, it reflected our silent collective prayer for peace in the world. (ethereal opposite to earthly).

Audrey Murray

‘The Tree of Life’ symbolises the connection between heaven and earth, body and mind, and the physical and spiritual. The angel represents a messenger between heaven and earth and the addition of the cherry blossom flowers continues the theme of connecting birth, death and rebirth.

We hope that you enjoyed learning about what inspires these artists. This series will continue over the coming weeks. ‘Opposites Attract’ is at the Phoenix Park Visitors Centre. The gallery is open from 10 AM until 4 PM daily.

Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog

Contact Us: If you have any concerns about content, please email us at feltmakersie@gmail.com.

Questions: For questions about content, please follow the link to the organisation involved in hosting the event.