FESTIVAL THE POWER OF LOCAL - PROGRAMME

THE POWER OF LOCAL

A festival of art and culture in Ennistymon, 4th – 7th August 2011

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 THE POWER OF LOCAL, a celebratory festival organised by the Courthouse Gallery will take place over a period of four days, August 4th - 7th, in various venues in Ennistymon. The festival will present art, film, live-performance, food, music, video, panel discussions, an open-air market, outdoor screenings, open studios and artist talks exploring the rich complexities of the local and the trans-local.

 The Festival which we have named “THE POWER OF LOCAL”, is a collection of events exploring the potential and possibilities of the power of local by bringing together a range of thinkers and makers, producers and artists, organisations and businesses from local, national and international contexts to consider some of these questions.

 Invited contributors include the artist group Liquid (Estonia), Dr. Igor Calzada, Associate Researcher at the Center for Basque Studies-University of Nevada, Reno (USA), Outrider Artists (Ireland), Ground Up Artists Collective (Ireland), The Trans-Local Condition, a programme of international artist films curated by Fiona Woods (Ireland).

 Everyone is local to somewhere; this festival is an opportunity to engage with the rich possibilities of ‘local’, to consider local as a way of taking action, producing culture and encountering difference in association with others.  Everyone is included. Of course, irrespective of how ‘local’ an event, or festival of events may be, the power of the arts to transcend geographical, political and cultural boundaries and barriers is internationally recognised and accepted. This ‘power’ will be recognised and celebrated in Ennistymon, August 4th – 7th, 2011.  The Festival THE POWER OF LOCAL is devised and directed by Trudi van der Elsen, curator/coordinator of the Courthouse Gallery.

 General Program of the festival  - All events are free

The festival is kindly sponsored by the Clare County Council.

Byrne’s Townhouse & Restaurant, Fitzpatrick’s Super Value, Hayes Print, Ennistymon.

-Thursday 4th Aug

8pm: Official Opening in the Courthouse Gallery by Senator Martin Conway.

8.30 pm: “Sunrise” A Life Performance by Sorge, (Margus Tiitsmaa)  from the artist group Liquid.

9pm: Ron Kavana, reading & singing from his book & box set “Irish Ways”, in Banner Books,

10pm: An outdoor film screening of “Seaside Stories” by Fergus Tighe in the Square, Ennistymon. (on Considine’s wall)


-Friday 5th Aug. - The Courthouse Gallery will host:

11- 5pm: The international exhibition “Liquid is everywhere” from the Estonian artist group Liquid.

11- 5pm: “The Translocal Condition”, a continuous screening programme of international artist films, curated by Fiona Woods. The Translocal Condition is made up of works by; Kultivator (SW), Herbologies/Foraging Networks (FI/LAT), Nina Nordstrom (FI), Gareth Kennedy (IRL), Wapke Feenstra (NL), Jennie Guy & Claire Behan (IRL), Ahmed Nabil (EGY), theweathergroup_U (AUS). 

5pm: An artist talk by Gareth Kennedy, admission free, all welcome.

7pm: Official opening, In the Blue Frog Café of James Slevin’s new hand carved wooden objects.

 -Saturday 6th Aug. - The Courthouse Gallery will host:

11- 5pm: The international exhibition “Liquid is everywhere” from the Estonian artist group Liquid.

11- 5pm: “The Translocal Condition”, a continuous screening programme of international artist films, curated by Fiona Woods.

11- 5pm: OPEN STUDIOS -The resident artists in the Courthouse Gallery; Jackie Askew, Michael Hanrahan, Ann Vaughan, Liz Moloney and Sara Foust welcome the public to see their work in progress.

5pm: PANEL DISCUSSION on The Power of Local in the Courthouse Gallery. All welcome to contribute.

IN THE STREET OUTSIDE THE COURTHOUSE GALLERY:

11- 5pm: OPEN AIR MARKET including local crafts, food, music and community information.

12- 5pm: MUSICAL ENTERTAINMENT: Paddy Mulcahy, Edel Barry and special guests.

3pm: Poetry Reading from Majilla Culinane and Devon McNamara, presented by Jessie Lendennie of Salmon Poetry.

8 pm: In An Teach Bia, Maeve Collins and Marie Connole will collaborate on a participatory project based on Brian Merriman's “The Midnight Court”.

-Sunday 7th Aug. - The Courthouse Gallery will host:

11- 5pm: The international exhibition “Liquid is everywhere” from the Estonian artist group Liquid.

11- 5pm: “The Translocal Condition”, a continuous screening programme of international artist films, curated by Fiona Woods.

11- 5pm: OPEN STUDIOS - The resident artists in the Courthouse Gallery; Jackie Askew, Michael Hanrahan, Ann Vaughan, Liz Moloney and Sara Foust welcome the public to see their work in progress.

IN THE STREET OUTSIDE THE COURTHOUSE GALLERY:

11- 5pm: OPEN AIR MARKET including local crafts, food, music and community information.

12- 5pm: MUSICAL ENTERTAINMENT: Paddy Mulcahy, Edel Barry and special guests.

STUDIO ARTISTS:

Jackie Askew will be showing work in her studio from The Counting Prophetess Exhibition.... work from Iceland .

Ann Vaughan  will be showing 'Ar Aghaidh Linn!'  ( Off We Go!)

This will be a series of Drawings/Sketches based on observations of people 'on the move', again from snapshots from the Prom in Lahinch, where it all happens!

Liz Moloney  ‘Curious’: The inherent curiosity of animals and her immediate environment has influenced her recent work, photography and observational drawings often develop into finished pieces.

Michael Hanrahan: Will show his recent work including paintings of the local area and also work from his travels.

Sara Foust: ‘An Unreasonable Fear of Loss’ an installation of photography, paintings and other works dealing with memory.

As part of the festival there will be exhibitions, films and installations from various artists in venues around Ennistymon town:

 Fiona O’Dwyer: Location: Byrnes Townhouse & Restaurant, Main St, Ennistymon.

”Shoes to collect the cheque in” (1,350 Used Stamps and Yes Glue)
Fiona O’Dwyer: WORTH… Work in progress by visual artist Fiona O¹Dwyer.  Her work crosses a range of media including drawing, sound/video installation, sculpture, performance and print. Her practice increasingly references the cinematic, engaging with both the narrative content in, and the making of, film.

 James Slevin: Location: the Blue Frog Café and Arts Venue, Ennistymon.

Hand carved wooden objects.

Opening: 7pm - Friday 5th August

Marianne Slevin: Location: Fitzpatrick’s (Old Super Value shop), Parliament St., Ennistymon.

 "The Mycelium and Earth Regeneration Series": An exhibition of drawings on maps which are local to the Burren as well as other places. The works include text about the place and the time they were being made in Doolin.

Alexandra Rafferty: Location: OH LA LA, French Creperie.

2 Video pieces: “Ram Project” and “Inside Out”.

Vincent Wall: Location: Wall's Shop Window, Main Street, Ennistymon.

“Davorenia” - A Tribute to the T-Shirt Stylings of Michael Davoren.

Format: Multimedia Installation

Marie Hannon, Monica de Bath, Eimhin Hawes: Location: Tides Shop, Main St. Ennistymon

Marie Hannon’s practice is primarily concerned with the social environments and conditions that have a bearing on who we are as individuals and as a people.

Monica de Bath is currently exploring the complexities of stories that go beyond ideas of legal ownership and dig deep into a people's relationship with Land, with each other and the urgent need to make a living.

Eimhin Hawes: ‘The Horde’ is an installation work that explores the global problem of colony collapse disorder in honeybees.

Deirdre O’Mahony: Location: the local Ennistymon Post Office.

 shows a video about the X-PO in Kilnaboy.

Maria Kerin: Location: Good Night In, Video Store, The Square, Ennistymon.

shows the video performance that she made on Raadi airport Tartu Estonia. 

Also "The Price of Flour"- consisting of 50 unused Estonian paper flour bags will appear in shelves around the shops of Ennistymon. They were designed by Michael Walsh. The artist sees them as small artworks highlighting the price of flour at different times over the Estonian past.

Pauline Keena: Live performance on Main St. Ennistymon. Sunday 2pm

The human form is the most important subject for her. Using the body as metaphor for local she engages the language of stillness, silence and repetition to explore moments of transition from lostness to listening.

Fergus Cronin:  Live performance in a public place in Ennistymon for 2 hours, Sat or Sun (or both) : 

“I NEED TO BELONG”

THE POWER OF LOCAL A festival of art, food and culture in Ennistymon, 4th – 8th August 2011

THE POWER OF LOCAL

A festival of art, food and culture in Ennistymon, 4^th – 8^th August 2011

THE POWER OF LOCAL, a celebratory festival organized by the Courthouse Gallery will take place over a period of four days, August 4th - 8th, in various venues in Ennistymon. The festival will present art, film, live-performance, food, music, video, panel discussions, an open-air market, outdoor screenings, open studios and artist talks exploring the rich complexities of the local and the trans-local.

The Festival which we have named “THE POWER OF LOCAL”, is a collection of events exploring the potential and possibilities of the power of local by bringing together a range of thinkers and makers, producers and artists, organisations and businesses from local, national and international contexts to consider some of these questions.

Invited contributors include the artist group Liquid (Estonia), Dr. Igor Calzada, Associate Researcher at the Center for Basque Studies-University of Nevada, Reno (USA), Outrider Artists (Ireland), Ground Up Artists Collective (Ireland), The Trans-Local Condition, a programme of international artist films curated by Fiona Woods (Ireland) as well as local artists.

Everyone is local to somewhere; this festival is an opportunity to engage with the rich possibilities of ‘local’, to consider local as a way of taking action, producing culture and encountering difference in association with others.  Everyone is included. Of course, irrespective of how ‘local’ an event, or festival of events may be, the power of the arts to transcend geographical, political and cultural boundaries and barriers is internationally recognised and accepted. This ‘power’ will be recognised and celebrated in Ennistymon, August 4th – 8th, 2011.  The Festival THE POWER OF LOCAL is devised and directed by Trudi van der Elsen, curator/coordinator of the Courthouse Gallery.

General Program of the festival:
-Thursday (4th Aug) 8pm, Grand Opening in the Courthouse Gallery and an outdoor film screening “Seaside Stories” by Fergus Tighe in the Square.
-Friday (5th Aug) The Courthouse will host an international exhibition including a screening of Trans-Local Condition. Ennistymon town will have exhibitions and installations in many venues. 5pm: artist talk by Gareth Kennedy, admission free, all welcome.
-Saturday (6th Aug)The Courthouse will host an international exhibition including a screening of Trans-Local Condition. Ennistymon town will have exhibitions and installations in many venues. OPEN STUDIOS- The resident artists in the Courthouse welcome the public to see their work in progress, OUTDOOR MARKET of local crafts, food, music and community  information. PANEL DISCUSSION on The Power of Local at 5pm in the Courthouse Gallery. All welcome to contribute.
-Sunday (7th Aug) The Courthouse will host an international exhibition including a screening of Trans-Local Condition. Ennistymon town will have exhibitions and installations in many venues. OPEN STUDIOS- The resident artists in the Courthouse welcome the public to see their work in progress, OUTDOOR MARKET of local crafts, food, music and community  information.
-Monday (8th Aug) Peer Critique for Studio Artists with Dougal McKenzie

'Timelines' an exhibition by Emma Barone, Kathryna Cuschieri, Ciara McMahon

 

Emma Barone   – paintings

Kathryna Cuschieri – glass sculptures

Ciara McMahon – video

Official opening on July 9^th at 5pm – exhibition runs until July 30

Emma Barone’s paintings are inspired by the shape trees adopt on the West Coast of Ireland. This shape, or form, presents a distinctive windblown profile, one that is sculpted by the elements. The proximity of the Atlantic Ocean is a major determining factor in terms of influencing and moulding the shape of the trees. She sees the physical manifestation of ‘shape’ as having spiritual, psychological, elemental and socio-historical dimensions. ‘Trees have an energy which absorbs, responds and emits in a cyclical, generational, manner. It is my intention to capture these layers, through the medium of art and to share my vision in a way that the observer can connect to and re-establish an already existing relationship with past, present and future.’

Kathryna Cuschieri’s glass sculptures involve 
casting body parts of people she feels connected to and influenced by the timeline of their lives. By engaging with the process of their life, this enables her to create artworks which they have inspired, turning their inner world into visible glass landscapes. When casting the person they have been asked to transfer emotional awareness into the mould which affects the outcome of the finished piece. ‘All my pieces are created by fusing layers of glass and copper, aluminium, gold, silver and gold mica. These fused pieces are then cast or slumped into the body molds to create the finished pieces’

 Ciara McMahon’s video installation ‘Mutual : Esteem’ documents a site specific collaborative event at SIN nightclub, Temple bar, Dublin by ‘The Forever Young Choir’ and Ciara McMahon. Documentation chronicles a seven month period of research and interchange between the Dublin based artist and ‘The Forever Young Choir’, a 28 member over 70’s mixed choral group, based in Ennis, Co. Clare.

An immersive experience, the work provocatively contrasts cultural idioms – rural folk culture and uber trendy night clubbing – to create a playful work questioning pedestrian responses to popular cultural spaces. In SIN's atmospheric environment the choir performed such long standing hits as 'Lillie Marleen' and 'Swing Low Sweet Chariot'. 

The choir practice once a week in the Ennis Cathedral choir room. Members show enormous commitment to their choir while always retaining a degree of levity in their attitude towards life and performing. The choir has performed successfully at several local events and this is their first performance in Dublin.

'Surrender' New works by Pauline Goggin

Official opening Saturday July 9th at 5pm – exhibition runs until July 30

The word surrender can be interpreted as an expression of defeat or generousity, a declaration or a gift, a relinquishing of something , yielding to a strong influence or simply giving up the fight.

In these works the artist explores her interest in the practice of daily surrender to the creative life. Reminiscent of Tibetan prayer flags, these images of arms being blown in the wind can be seen as surrender to the creative spirit.

Implicit in the embroidered arms is a daily acceptance and a willingness to live life in all its shades, stitch by stitch, moment by moment, day by day. Pauline Goggin’s practice has included keeping daily journals over the last thirty years. In the textile works, these have been a rich source of text. The text, in itself, does not seek to tell a story, the embroidered words, selected at random, from the pages of her journals, however they are illustrative of a commitment to a life lived in a daily spirit of curiousity and reflective enquiry.

Prints, Sculpture and a new piece of animation explore the theme of surrender in the intimate Red Couch Space at The Courthouse Gallery, in Ennistymon, Co.Clare.

Arts Festival The Power of Local

THE POWER OF LOCAL, taking place over a period of four days, August 4th - 8th, across multiple venues in Ennistymon.  The festival will present art, live-performance, food, video, panel discussions, an open-air market, outdoor screenings, open studios and artist talks, exploring the rich complexities of the Local (and the trans-local). Invited contributors include the artist group Liquid (Estonia), Dr. Igor Calzada, Associate Researcher at the Center for Basque Studies-University of Nevada, Reno (USA), Outrider Artists (Ireland), Ground Up Artists Collective (Ireland), and The Trans-Local Condition, a screening of international artist films curated by Fiona Woods. 

General Program of the festival:

Thursday (4th Aug) in the evening, grand opening in the gallery and outdoor film screening in the Square.

Friday (5th Aug) Exhibitions/Film screening in the gallery and on location, in the gallery at 5pm an artist talk by Gareth Kennedy

Saturday (6th Aug) Exhibitions/Film screening in the gallery and on location, OPEN STUDIOS, Outdoor Market, Panel discussion on The Power of Local (afternoon)

Sunday (7th Aug)  Exhibitions/Film screening in the gallery and on location, OPEN STUDIOS, Outdoor Market. - closing of exhibitions.

Monday (8th Aug) Peer Critique for Studio Artists with Dougal McKenzie 

THE POWER OF LOCAL

The move towards a sustainable society is producing new forms of thinking and organising at local level all around the world, part of a dynamic of social and cultural change. These forms of organising recognise that community is something that is practiced; by forming ourselves into porous and active communities - artist collectives, transition town networks, farmer’s markets, discussion groups – we can begin to generate change through actions and events in local and trans-local situations that will make a difference to our world. Artists are making art increasingly in response to local situations where they are living. This is notable particularly in relation to rural situations where the interface between human society and the state of the land is so apparent, something that brings the relationship between art and ecology into focus. 

The Festival THE POWER OF LOCAL, is an event exploring the power of local by bringing together a range of thinkers and makers, producers and artists, organisations and businesses from local, national and international contexts to consider some of these questions. Taking place over a period of four days (August 4th – 8th), the Festival will happen across multiple venues in Ennistymon, Co. Clare presenting art, live-performance, food, video, panel discussion, an open-air market, outdoor screenings, open studios and artist talks. The Festival will include invited contributions from the artist group Liquid (Estonia), Dr. Igor Calzada, Ph.D.Lecturer &.Associate Researcher at the Center for Basque Studies-University of Nevada, Reno (USA).Outrider Artists (Ireland), Ground Up Artists Collective (Ireland), and The Trans-Local Condition, a screening of international artist films curated by Fiona Woods.   http://www.collectionofminds.net/ #4

Everyone is local to somewhere; this festival is an opportunity to engage with the rich possibilities of local, to consider local as a way of taking action, producing culture and encountering difference in association with others.  Everyone is included. 

The Festival THE POWER OF LOCAL is devised and directed by Trudi van der Elsen. 

                         

The topic for the panel discussion is The Power of Local.

Panel: Fiona Woods www.fionawoods.net

           Marge Laast, Liquid Group Estonia http://www.vedelik.edicypages.com/en

           Dr. Igor Calzada http://www.igorcalzada.com

           Transition Town, Roisin Garvey

           X-PO, Kilnaboy

          

Guests on Skype: Evelyn, MOKS, Estonia (tbc)

CD Launch Paddy Mulcahy - Trouble Instigator- 23rd June at 9 pm - free of charge

Fiona Woods - extended interview on ABC Radio National Australia

Artworks Feature: Rural artists with a wide orbit

 This week in Artworks, a feature about art and rural communities, art and agriculture.

Last month in Swan Hill, a town on the Victorian/New South Wales border, an assortment of artists, arts organisations, farmers, historians and other interested locals gathered to talk about cultural life in rural communities, and to hear guests from around Australia and abroad. The event was called ACRE 2 and, at a time when so many rural communities around Australia, and indeed around the world, are undergoing huge changes, one of the major question posed was: what's the role of art and creativity in re-imagining the landscape? 

For Artworks, Michael Shirrefs went to the Swan Hill Regional Art Gallery, on the banks of the Murray River, to speak to some of the participants. And he was amazed at the range and scope of the discussions, which clearly mark a big shift in the way rural arts communities see themselves.
Please see following Link:

http://www.abc.net.au/rn/artworks/stories/2011/3237586.htm

The Outside is Inside

The Outside is Inside

New Works by Martina Cleary  

   

Opening Reception Friday 3rd June at 7pm

The exhibition will be opened by Elaine D’Alton, Clare Women’s Network

 

The work presented in this show has  evolved through a collaboration with Clare Women’s network based in Ennis, beginning in 2009. The large tableaux photographic images, while collaboratively constructed are inspired by real life events. Part of this project was initially presented as a series of posters, released daily with statistical information during the 16 Days International Campaign against Gender-Based Violence in November 2009. Subsequent research, supported by the Create Artist in the Community scheme has sought to focus on exploring how perceptions of safety and threat correlate with womens lived experience of both private and public spaces within the local community. While some of the works in this show are constructed or performed, others are inspired by over sixty individual interviews and are more documentary in nature. Part II of this body of work will be presented as a solo exhibition at the RHA Ashford Gallery in November 2011.

Artist’s Bio

Martina Cleary is a multi-media artist working with photography, video, drawing and text as her primary media. In Ireland she attended NCAD and The Crawford College of Art & Design, followed by post-graduate studies at The Academy of Fine Arts and The Alvar Aalto University, Helsinki. Beginning in the early 90’s, her work has been shown and collected in Ireland, Finland and Germany. Recent shows and awards have included; The Irish Arts Council Project Award 2010, the Create Artist in the Community Award 2010, the Roscommon Arts Office Art@Work Residency 2009,  EV+A 2008 at Limerick City Gallery, Impressions 2008 All Ireland Print Show (First Prize) at Galway Arts Centre and ‘Things That Go Bump’ a solo show at Monster Truck Studio & Gallery, Dublin in 2008.

Martina’s work deals with investigating what lies hidden beneath the surface of the everyday, particularly with respect to the construction of stories, histories and knowledges of place which inform the creation of individual and collective identity. Her work often brings together memories, associations and perceptions attached to particular sites, whether historical or contemporary to discover the relationship between place, power and the potential of the individual to affect change.  

 

Martina’s work has been supported by The Irish Arts Council, Clare County Council, The Finnish Arts Council, The Finnish Cultural Foundation, The Finnish Institute in London and a number of other Arts organizations in both Ireland and Finland. Along with her work as an artist, Martina is currently Head of Photography at Burren College of Art and also works as a lecturer in Critical & Contextual Studies at Limerick School of Art and Design.

Further information about this artist is available at www.martinacleary.com

 

National Campaign for the Arts - Meet and Greet – Monday 16 May at 11am

National Campaign for the Arts - Meet and Greet – Monday 16 May at 11am

The Courthouse Gallery invites you to a Meet and Greet coffee morning / meeting on Monday 16 May at 11 am in the Courthouse Gallery, Parliament Street, Ennistymon.

This meeting is one of over 30 organised in and for each constituency throughout the country on that day, as part of the National Campaign for the Arts.

The Meet and Greet is an opportunity for you to get to know your new TD’s and Senators and to put to them your hopes and concerns about the Arts in your area.

We believe the arts make an invaluable contribution to society. As Ireland struggles to rebuild its

reputation on the international stage and restore confidence at home, we believe the arts can help.

This meeting is a way for you to open up a dialogue with your new representatives on how their continued investment in the arts is indeed an investment in Ireland and in the realisation of the society we all want.

We very much hope you will be able to attend the Meet and Greet for Clare constituency and look forward to seeing you then.

Trudi van der Elsen           Kathryn Comber

Co-ordinator / Curator       Gallery Committee

             

          “VENUS”  
              Works by
      Vicky Lennie
     April 29th- May 26^th

             Official opening
          by actress Vanessa Earl 
       on Friday April 29^th at 8 pm

 


 
 In the middle of the room a large rectangle upholstered in red velvet is hanging. It has a hole in it which you can stick your head into, and a painting on the other side, like at a seaside photo booth. Opposite hangs a mirror in which you can see yourself transformed...

The female nude is a familiar figure in art history. In fact, she is the subject of the oldest representational art that we have: some figurines have been dated at up to 200,000 years old. But how many of these images actually describe real women?

Drawing from her experiences in pregnancy and motherhood, and by referencing and manipulating images from art history, Vicky Lennie explores this genre from different viewpoints, using media ranging from drawing and painting to installation and stuffed fabric sculpture. By the use of means such as touch and mirrors, the viewer is no longer a detached observer, but becomes a part of the artworks themselves.

Vicky Lennie was born and raised in Edinburgh and studied at the Glasgow School of Art, graduating in 1993. She moved to the west of Ireland in 1996, and helped to establish the Doolin Artists group who held several successful exhibitions. Vicky now works from her studio at the Blue Frog Café and Arts Venue, Ennistymon, Co. Clare, where she also teaches life drawing and programmes arts events and exhibitions for the venue. She has exhibited in various Irish galleries and Arts Centres, including the Belltable Arts Centre in Limerick and the Dept. of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands in Dublin.

info@vickylennie.net
www.vickylennie.net