How could a BREDA not be excited by a Brigid ‘s festival, especially if it’s only 15 km over the road?
Former Feltmakers Ireland chair, Breda Fay, in Kildare town.
On Saturday, I attended the launch of Sult Arists‘ “Unravelling an Icon” in Kildare town, an exciting art exhibition that transformed a town square into an open-air art gallery. Twenty local businesses bought into the idea of exhibiting sixty works in a wide variety of mediums/media of national and international artists in their windows as part of Brigid 1500 celebrations.
A free map and catalogue were available, as well as hot chocolate, cake and savouries (donations to Medicins sans Frontieres). I’m attaching a map in case you are interested and they’re not available later.
Despite the cold weather, it was great to meet many friends and/or exhibitors and chat about arty stuff: Liadain Butler, who introduced me to felt many moons ago, Tamzen Lundy and Aisling Hassett from Feltmakers Ireland, muinteoirí (teachers) from Newbridge, and the singers from Kill.
Artwork from Feltmakers Ireland’s Guild Members
Piece by Liadain Butler.Piece by Tamzen LundyPiece by Aisling Hassett‘ ‘The Shepherdess’ by Theresa Carroll
The exhibition is on for a month…. well worth a visit. There are some lovely coffee shops and eateries in the town square. {It runs through Sunday, the 18th of February}.
Additionally, there is an online art gallery of each piece in the show, which includes the artists’ details, titles of each piece, medium, and social media/links - https://sultartists.com/brigid-1500
To see more of the Feltmakers Ireland members’ works, visit the following links:
Thank you ever so much, Breda, for visiting Kildare to see the Art Trail in Kildare town! We appreciate learning more about the exhibition.– the editors.To learn more about Breda, visit her blog – https://bredafay.com/
Applications are now open to current members of the Feltmakers Ireland guild for our annual exhibition.
WHEN: This year, the exhibition is EARLIER in the year; it runs from the 4th of May until the 31st.
WHERE: We will display our work in the lovely Phoenix Park Visitors’ Centre gallery.
This year’s theme is ‘Opposites Attract’, which is open to your creative interpretation.
Our March Sunday Session will focus on ‘How to Apply to Exhibitions’. As part of the session, We will have a mind-mapping exercise on this year’s exhibition theme with member Dee Crofts.
Non Juried
Recently, our previous exhibitions have been juried. This year, we are doing something different and having a non-juried show. However, space within the gallery is limited. TWO pieces of artwork can be submitted, but only ONE will be selected. Similarly, the artwork’s dimensions cannot be wider than 60 cm due to space limitations. There is no limit on height.
Two-dimensional and/or three-dimensional works will be accepted.
Deadline
All digital photo submissions must arrive on or before Friday, the 19th of April, 2024. Good, clear photos of the artwork are essential. Photos should be taken against a plain white background for inclusion in digital media.
Feltmakers Ireland is interested in sharing members’ news, whether this is about upcoming craft fairs, exhibitions, teaching, grants, awards, or other fibre-related information of interest to our community. We are also interested in hearing about felt and textile-related travels!
We will continue to share items of interest by organisations and individuals outside our Guild.
Please include the Who, What, and Where of your event, your contact details, and your location in Ireland. Instagram has a 2,200-character limit, so please also keep this in mind. If there is a website, include the link. Lastly, a square-shaped image would be most welcome!
In October, the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland (RCPI) had an art exhibition with the theme of Climate and Health. The judging panel, chaired by James Hanley RHA, shortlisted 48 pieces of art, which are now open for public vote. You can view the shortlisted artworks and learn about the artists.
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.
The juried group exhibition, ‘Bountiful’, is in its final week of showing. Catch it at the Phoenix Park Visitors’ Centre in Dublin, Ireland. See how the beauty and versatility of feltmaking. Pieces include sculptures, wall pieces, and wearables. There is artwork for sale, along with our recently launched book, ‘Exploring Irish Wool for Feltmaking’.
Hours: 10 AM until 4 PM.
The exhibition ends at 3:30 PM on Sunday, October 29th.
The Felting and Fiber Studio is an online community with feltmakers from around the globe, including Canada, the USA, Europe, and beyond.
In addition, they have an excellent and active blog which covers a wide variety of topics, including needle felting, wet felting, and other textile-related adventures. The blog has categories and is keyword-searchable, too!
Features
In order not to miss any posts, subscribe to their blog.
In our Sunday, September Session, Feltmakers Ireland guild member Annika Berglund shared a sample from the Felting and Fiber Studio’s Nuno Felting with Paper Lamination class.
A Forum
Plus, the Felting and Fiber Studio has a Community Forum with quarterly feltmaking challenges. It is also an excellent place to ask questions and research topics related to felting.
Feltmakers Ireland member Hélène Dooley is also a Felting and Fiber Studio member. Recently, she wrote a blog post for them about all the felt-related activities that happened in Ireland! And what a busy month September was!
From Feltmakers Ireland’s September Sunday Session
Feltmakers Ireland founder Elizabeth Bonnar and her granddaughter at our September Sunday Session.
There was Sculpture in Context at the National Botanic Gardens, our September Sunday Session, where we created felted flowers to go on a Floral Tapestry to celebrate our 20th Anniversary, the opening of our juried group exhibition, ‘Bountiful’ at the Phoenix Park Visitors’ Centre, and finally, the official launch of our new book, “Exploring Irish Wool for Feltmaking”.
This past Saturday, from 3 to 5 PM, Feltmakers Ireland warmly embraced our community of wool and felt enthusiasts at the grand opening of our exhibition, ‘Bountiful.’ During this momentous occasion, we had the honour of Minister Pippa Hackett’s official inauguration of our recently published book, ‘Exploring Irish Wool for Feltmaking.’ If you missed her inspiring words, you can catch portions of her speech on our YouTube channel, @FeltmakersIreland.
Your presence and support made this event truly memorable, and we’re excited to continue sharing our passion for feltmaking with you all.
Exhibition organiser, Dee Crofts introducing Minister Pippa Hackett. The piece in the background is by Aisling Hassett.
The Committee
In every voluntary organization, there are individuals who play a crucial role in carefully coordinating the group’s various activities. Enclosed is a photograph capturing the dedicated committee members, standing proudly in front of our collaborative Floral Tapestry. This beautiful artwork commemorates the guild’s inception, marking two decades of passion and commitment since its founding by the remarkable Elizabeth Bonnar.
Minister Pippa Hackett and the committee members. The back row, from left to right: Deirdre Carroll, Pippa Hackett, Deirdre Crofts, Juliane Gorman. The front row, from left to right: Elizabeth Redding, Adrienne Dempsey, Lorna Cady, Annika Berglund, and Marian Fagan. Not pictured Fiona Leech.
Tapestry Revealed
Below is a photograph of our floral tapestry. Each of the flowers was handcrafted by our members during our September Sunday Session. Additional flowers were created, too. Then, several members got together to hand-stitch the over 180 flowers onto the backing, a very large piece of wool felt. {Invigilating members are welcome to sew on flowers during their volunteer shifts}.
The opening was quite exciting, with many members attending.
Feltmakers Ireland founder Elizabeth Bonnar and founding member Michelle Winters spoke with Minister Hackett.
Some of the artists and their pieces
Helene Dooley speaking with Minister HackettExhibition organiser Deirdre CroftsAisling Hassett and her piece. (She made her hat too!)Valerie O CeallaighAnnika BerglundAdrienne DempseyBreda FayCaitriona NolanHelena McGuinness
Each piece in our exhibition features a photograph of the artist along with the statement they provided, sharing their unique interpretation of ‘Bountiful’ when they submitted their work for jury consideration. You can spot these artist statements in some of the photographs above.
Below is the ‘Box of Chocolates’ by Clare Brophy that Minister Hackett points to in her speech.
Clare Brophy’s piece ‘Sharing the Bounty’.
In closing, we truly regret if we missed the opportunity to personally thank you at the opening event, which, as we’ve mentioned, was quite the bustling affair! With an impressive turnout of over fifty attendees, including cherished friends, beloved family members, and passionate supporters of the wool industry, it was a testament to the resilience and dedication of our community. Despite the tempestuous weather on that Saturday, your unwavering commitment to our cause warmed our hearts. We cannot express enough gratitude for your presence and your support for the art of feltmaking. Your enthusiasm fuels our creative journey, and we look forward to sharing more moments of inspiration and collaboration in the future. Thank you once again for making our opening event a truly memorable occasion.
Today, on the 30th of September, art enthusiasts and admirers of the exquisite craft of felting will gather at the Phoenix Park Visitors Centre in Dublin, Ireland. Feltmakers Ireland’s highly anticipated juried exhibition is set to open its doors to the public at 3 PM.
The exhibition showcases a stunning array of felted artworks that push the boundaries of this ancient textile art form.
As a sneak peek into what promises to be an awe-inspiring show, we bring you exclusive glimpses from four diverse pieces that will be featured in this remarkable exhibition.
Photo 1 – Breda Fay’s wall piece, ‘Torthuil’.
Photo 2 – Valerie OCeallaigh’s ‘Bountiful Love’.
Photo 3 – Adrienne Dempsey’s ‘Where the Wild Things Grow’.
Our exhibition will be opened by Pippa Hackett, Sheep Farmer and Irish Minister for Land Use and Biodiversity. She has kindly written the foreword to our ‘wool project book’, ‘Exploring Irish Wool for Feltmaking’. Copies of the book will be available during the opening and throughout the exhibition.
