Are you getting excited? Only TWO more days until Saturday – the day Feltmakers Ireland’s group exhibition, ‘Opposites Attract’ opens!
Here are sneak peeks of the following members’ artwork: Ramona Farrelly, Margaret Ryan Collins, Lory Cotti Cottini, Fiona Leech, Karena Ryan, Claire Merry, Caoimhe Tuthill, and Catríona Nolan.
Ramona Farrelly
Margaret Ryan Collins
Lory Cotti Cottini
Fiona Leech
Karena Ryan
Claire Merry
Caoimhe Tuthill
Caitriona Nolan
More images to share tomorrow!
Disclaimer for Feltmakers Ireland Blog
Feltmakers Ireland aims to share information about awards, education, events, exhibitions, and opportunities that you will find interesting. Our sharing is neither paid for by nor an endorsement of these individuals or organisations.
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.
Leiko Uchiyama in her studio.Tamzen Lundy with one of her foxes.Karena Ryan seated amongst her art.
The Design and Craft Council of Ireland (DCCI) has an ongoing series called‘Meet the Maker’, which interviews members and asks exciting questions such as, “What do you like most about your work?”. In addition, the DCCI has another feature called ‘Sunday Spotlight’, which shares information about a member via DCCI’s social media.
Three of Feltmakers Ireland’s guild members were recently featured by the DCCI.
If you are a member of the DCCI, you can arrange for yourself to be featured in a ‘Meet the Maker’ and/or a ‘Sunday Spotlight’! Contact the DCCI for further information – communications@dcci.com
Membership at DCCI allows designers and makers to:
Benefit from all DCCI services, projects and programmes
Get their regular e-newsletter, Connect
Participate in their health, personal accident and public liability insurance schemes
Fully professional members can boost their profile by listing on their Public Directory of Craftspeople. {Editor’s note: makers who work the material of felt are often found under the ‘Textile Making’ discipline on the directory.}
Feltmakers Ireland aims to share information about awards, education, events, exhibitions, and opportunities that you will find interesting. Our sharing is neither paid for by nor an endorsement of these individuals or organisations.
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.
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.
In three days’ time – Saturday, the 30th – our juried exhibition, ‘Bountiful‘, will open at the Phoenix Park Visitors Centre in Dublin. Pippa Hackett (Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine) will be there to officially open.
We will have the unveiling of our wonderful 20th Anniversary Flower Tapestry on Saturday, too. Thank you to all the members who helped create the abundance of beautiful flowers.
Additionally, our book will officially launch – ‘Exploring Irish Wool for Feltmaking’. So, it’ll be a wonderful day of celebrating our guild and our talents.
In the meantime, here are two close-ups of pieces that will be in the show.
Karena has three other pieces in an upcoming exhibition in Brussels! These artworks will be shown at the ‘Dear PrEUdence: A Positive Headspace in the EU’ exhibition. It will be held at the European Parliament in Brussels from the 10th through the 13th of October.
This year, applicants were invited to respond to the theme of ‘Pathways’, whether this was interpreted as a series of connections, reflections of travels or environment, experiences or actions, a personal journey or a journey in making.
Adam Frew, Adele Pound, Anne Butler, Elizabeth Johnston, Fiona Kerr, Heather McFadden, Irene McBride, Karen Hamilton, Karena Ryan, Lauren Scott, Maya Todd, Neil Marlow, Patricia Kelly, Patricia Millar, Patrick Colhoun, Pennie Metcalfe, Red Earth Designs, Sam Gleeson, Samantha Moore, Sandra Robinson, Sarah Cathers, Scott Benefield, Shauna McCann, Sue Cathcart, Tamzen Lundy Designs, and Tracey Johnston.
The exhibition runs from the 3rd of August to the 15th.
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.
Poster for ‘A Meeting of Hands’ Exhibition.
Some of the members purchased their washed Galway wool fleece from Donegal Yarns.
Annika Berglund
Annika Berglund’s ‘Connections’.
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.
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.
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.
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/
Feltmakers Ireland 