Farming for Nature will have Irish-raised wool ambassador Blátnaid Gallagher, a sheep farmer from Co. Galway, in their next Q&A session.
Learn more about Blátnaid and how she manages her farm via a live Zoom session.
When: Tuesday, the 13th of February at 8 PM.
To register for the free Zoom session, visit the Farming for Nature website – https://www.farmingfornature.ie/ask-the-farmer-qa-with-blatnaid-gallagher/
A close look at revitalising church buildings as part of Architecture at the Edge 2023; an exhibition of drawings & series of felting workshops.
This exhibition presents a study of St. John’s ‘Church on the Hill‘ in Ballinasloe, Co. Galway, through survey work, mapping, and archival material, alongside exploratory drawings of church repurposing projects in Flanders, Belgium.
Additionally, as a form of church revitalisation, a series of wool-felting workshops will take place, where up to 20 participants will be guided through the process of wet-felting a large-scale textile artwork together to be displayed within the church as part of the exhibition.
No previous experience is needed – the workshops are intended to be inclusive and convivial, bringing people together for conversation, storytelling, and exploring a shared vision for the future of St. John’s.
The project is led by Feltmakers Ireland member Beibhinn Delaney, in collaboration with Marie-Caroline Kawa and Lara Clifford, and is based on previous research supported by the Arts Council Agility Award 2022 and assisted Prof. Sven Sterken and Charlotte Ardui of KU Leuven, whose expertise is in adaptive reuse of Flemish churches.
Support kindly comes from the Arts Council of Ireland, Galway County Council, and Donegal Yarns, who have provided beautiful Irish wool, locally sourced from Galway sheep.
The exhibition runs from the 29th of September through the 8th of October. Open 12:00 – 17:00 PM.
There are three felting workshops on the following dates: Friday, the 29th of September, Tuesday, the 3rd of October, and Friday, the 7th of October. Each runs from 14:30 – 16:30 PM and needs to be booked.
For more information and to book the free workshops, visit the Architecture at the Edge (AATE) website – https://www.architectureattheedge.com/events-2023/faith-in-the-future
To learn more about church repurposing, read this interesting article by Beibhinn Delaney on Type, a website focussing on the design of the built environment. – https://www.type.ie/blog/this-is-my-church
Several members of Feltmakers Ireland have pieces in the Galway Wool Co-op‘s one-day exhibition, ‘A Meeting of Hands’. The show is part of the group’s Meithal.
Some of the members purchased their washed Galway wool fleece from Donegal Yarns.
One member, Annika Berglund, made a felted wall panel which has protruding felt details using natural Galway Sheep Breed wool. This work, ‘Connections’, includes some black Merino for shading. It is a felted piece mounted over a wooden frame for hanging.
To see more of Annika’s work, visit her gallery’s website – https://www.oliviercornetgallery.com/annika-berglund
Another member, Juliane Gorman, made a felted top hat inspired by finishing James Joyce’s ‘Ulysses’ with her local library’s book group. In addition to Galway breed wool, her piece includes dark brown, Irish-raised Jacob wool.
To see Juliane’s work, visit her website – https://felthappiness.com
Member Karena Ryan has several pieces on show, including ‘Bhean an Tire’ (Women of the Land). This piece features dried lavender, marigold and silks that have been wet felted into Galway raw wool with free-motion embroidery and Irish linen.
See more of Karena’s work on her website – https://karenaryanartist.com/
Member Anne Van Dorpe works with creating needlefelted animals. See more of her work on her Instagram page – https://www.instagram.com/annevandorpe5416/
Apologies if we have missed any other members.
The other participants in the exhibition work in a variety of disciplines and include the following makers: Liadain Aiken, Shannon Byrnes, Malú Colorín, Katie Downes, Michelle Hickey, Ryan Daniel Koenig, Cathlin McKeon, Christine McNamara, Conor O’Brien, Niamh O’Connell, Adela Passas, Elina Plevako, and Olga Profutkina. Apologies if we have overlooked anyone.
Although ‘A Meeting of Hands’ exhibition is by invitation only, you can see a video of all 17 artists’ pieces on the Galway Wool Co-op’s Instagram page – https://www.instagram.com/p/Cu1BxijvikD/
Via Suzanna Crampton on the Irish Wool Discussion Group on Facebook –
Connemara National Park will be celebrating its twinning agreement with Terra Nova National Park, Newfoundland, Canada, by undertaking a Heritage Event on Canada Day, the 1st of July 2023.
Among the day’s events is a focus on sheep and wool.
For more information, please contact the Visitor Centre on 095 41054 or 087 2919721
For a full schedule, visit the website – https://www.nationalparks.ie/connemara/special-heritage-event-on-july-1st-2023/
The Galway Wool Co-op is holding an art exhibition on the 22nd of July at their annual Meitheal in Althenry, Galway.
They invite artists, designers, and crafters in Ireland to engage with the themes and concepts that connect the Galway Sheep breed to the Irish landscape. The Co-op aims to creatively enrich the knowledge of Ireland’s authentic sheep breed with a wider audience.
Submissions are now open. Collaborative pieces are welcome. You will be able to sell your work – there’s no commission fee.
To participate, please DM via Instagram* @michellehickeyart by midnight 31st of May. She will email you the details.
Where to get Galway Wool? This Irish-raised wool fibre can be obtained from Donegal Yarns. It is 7.50 euro, per kilo. If that is too large an amount, perhaps folks can pool together? To purchase, call Donegal Yarns at +353 (0)749738055
*If you are ~not~ on Instagram, please email Feltmakers Ireland member Juliane for further info.
The Arts Council, in partnership with Drama and Theatre Studies at the University of Galway, and Creative Europe Desk Ireland, will present the Festival Makers Conference (formerly Change Makers) on Thursday 11 and Friday 12 May 2023 in Galway City.
The conference will provide opportunities for festival makers, festival stakeholders and artists making work in a festival context to exchange ideas, share, map sector developments and discuss practices relevant to festivals in Ireland.
Free Conference Tickets for Artists are available.
For more information, visit their website.
Feltmakers Ireland 