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Four felters exhibited their work at Showcase Ireland 2024. This may not seem like a lot, but in 2023, only two designers/artisans exhibited work using the medium of feltmaking. So, there was twice as much this year!
Each of the artists from Showcase 2024 has her own unique way of working with the medium of felted wool. Two create wearable art, while the other two create art for the home.
Here they are, in A-Z order.
Alexa Designs
County Wicklow resident Alexa Zolich of Alexa Design creates luxurious Nunofelted wraps. Originally from Poland, she studied Textiles at the National College of Art and Design. You can view some of her work in person at Marion Cuddy at Powerscourt Centre, Dublin.
My nana taught me to knit and to crochet, but discovering the versatility of felting was a revelation to me as artistic expression. I found it soon became my therapeutic, go to textile medium instantly connecting me to the landscape at my door and allowing me to translate the textures, form and sense of place in my work drawing on past bonds and imbuing memories into each piece.
Guild member Karena Ryan of Karena Ryan Textile Art is based in County Galway. She combines hand-felted wool with stitch and works with Irish linens, tweeds and vintage Foxford blankets. Her felted lamp made from Irish-raised Galway wool was shortlisted for an award in the Home Category of Showcase 2024.
Two of Feltmakers Ireland’s members have stands at the upcoming Showcase 2024 at the RDS. The show runs from Sunday, the 21st through Tuesday, the 23rd of January.
Karena Ryan will be at Stand C25, which is in the DCCI area. She has a lamp felted from Irish Galway wool, which has been selected to be displayed at the Edit Display and has been shortlisted for a Showcase award.
Caóilfíonn Murphy O’Hanlon – aka Cushla of Gullion, will be at Stand L63, which is in the LEO area. She is looking forward to meeting current and new stockists.
Feltmakers Ireland Member Caóilfíonn Murphy O’Hanlon is part of a group exhibition, ‘Flourish’, at the Bridge Street Studios in Dundalk, Co Louth.
Caóilfíonn, who you may know as Cushla of Gullion via her business name, works out of studio space at Bridge Street Studios. The Studios are a thriving hub of art, design and craft, which houses eight artist workspaces, classroom space for hands-on workshops, and a gallery and shop open to the public each Saturday.
The exhibition runs through Saturday, the 23rd of September.
Member Caóilfíonn Murphy O’Hanlon, who creates felted landscapes under the business name Cushla of Gullion, has an exhibition, Along The Loanin, that launches this Friday at 7pm in the Market Place Theatre & Arts Centre, Armagh, Northern Ireland.
It’s a multi-media exhibition of word, wool paintings, and photography – all inspired by the hills of home.
Feltmakers Ireland 