Wednesday, June 13, 2012




In the Red Couch Space

Oblivion
Tiger Lily. Maudie de Kaijzer

Paintings and Small Installations by Maudie de Keijzer
14th June – 12th July


Official opening Saturday 16th June at 4pm

Maudie de Keijzer is a Dutch artist based in Co. Clare since February 2011
In September 2011 she started working as a studio artist at the Ennistymon Courthouse Gallery. Oblivion will be her first Exhibition in Ireland.




With a mixture of oil paintings and small installations I explore the tensions between people and the world around them. I am looking at their ability to communicate and how they communicate and relate to each other within these tensions. To me oblivion is a state of being in which the possibility of transformation is concealed.  



            Discarded. Maudie de Kaijzer


Dear all,
As you may have noticed, yesterday our email address was hacked and used to perform a well known phishing scam to try and convince people to pay money to supposedly rescue me, Trudi, from Spain. I can assure you all I am very well here in Ennistymon and we have taken extensive measures to increase the security of our email. The mail you received was in itself no threat to your computer, private data or your personal information at all - it was just trying to convince you to send money like so many other email phishing scams. It is important to note that this was a hack carried out external to The Gallery, Computers and Data. G-mail is a very popular email provider that many of us use and is 99% of the time reliable. We have informed g-mail of the incident and hope that this is the last time we have such an occurrence.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your concern and I apologise for any inconvenience caused.
With best regards,
From Trudi
And all of us in the Courthouse.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

WEST CORK the premiere of a short film


WEST CORK
 ....PLUS SOME NORTH CLARE VOICES


Friday 18th May at 8.00 pm
Free event

The poem West Cork - Gobnaits' Bed ; Rag Tree ; Holy Well  by the late Seán Dunne is a remarkable homage to an idiosyncratic form of public worship which is still practised in Ireland today - the veneration of holy wells, rag trees and curiously-shaped stones. The poem is set in the magical St Gobnait's monastic site in Ballyvourney in Cork - a great magnet for pilgrims right down to the present day. St Gobnait is the patron saint of bees.
The poet Seán Dunne is a sorely lamented voice of Irish poetry. His premature death in 1995 was a major shock in the Irish literary world. Brendan Kennelly said of him "Dunne constantly pitted his own values against the pain, suffering, violence and futility of the world. And his values are strong, perhaps lasting ones"

Three North Clare based people came together this spring to make a short 5 minute film version of the poem.
 Carles Casasin of Ballyvaughan filmed and edited ; Mick O'Riordan of Doolin provided voice and original soundtrack whilst Tony Kirby of Kilnaboy produced.

There will be a fine cast of North Clare voices on hand on the evening to enrich the event with song, music and thoughts. M.C. on the evening will be John Morgan (Kilfenora) and guests will include Fr Denis Crosby (Liscannor), Phil Gaston (Kilnaboy) and Susan Daly (Doolin) 
The event coincides with Ennistymon's first ever Dylan Thomas Literary Festival which takes place over the same weekend. All are welcome for what promises to be a memorable evening. More information 
065 707 1630.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Liens An exhibition of new work by Finola Graham and Pauline Turmel


11 th May – 7th June
Official opening 11th May at 8 pm by Siobhan Mulcahy



Liens (ties, bonds, connections) is an evolution of the work done by the French
artist Pauline Turmel and the Irish artist Finola Graham for their exhibition Cross-Currents in the ‘Centre Culturel Irlandais’Paris in 2011.

The Paris exhibition was the result of a process of exchange of ideas and of place
that took place over a period of three years, between the two artists of different worlds, nationalities and generations.   

Every three months from 2007 to 2010  Turmel came to Co. Clare to work in Graham’s studio and the surounding area, while Graham went to Paris and worked in Turmel’s studio there.

 Finola Graham

While working for our last exhibition in the ‘CCI’ in 2011, I was spending time in an area of paris where, as a student in the 1960’s,  I had lived one of the most intense and formative periods of my life. This brought up a map of submerged memory and layers upon layers of feelings (See image  Lariboissière).  This sense of a mapped history dictated what was for me a new approach to my work.  I started to use fine ink lines and nikawa glue paint   for a very sparse intense use of colour.  Since the Paris exhibition I have continued to work this way using  different textures of paper with prints, paint and  inks. The works in this exhibition combine some of the Paris  works with my recent works.




Pauline Turmel

Pendant que je travaillait pour notre Exposition dans le Centre Culturel Irlandais à Paris 2007/2011 j’ai passé De veritable periods d’immersion dans le quartier de Clare entre Fanore et Ennistymon.
J’ai eu beaucoup des contacts, facilité par le ‘courtyard gallery’
Je suis rentrée en contact et je suis allée à la rencontre de nombreuses
Personnes.c’est de ses expériences que nait les oeuvres qui font partie de cette exposition









Don’t be frightened, it’s just Quantum Logic – an exhibition by Barry Foley

C.G.I (computer generated imagery) watercolour & ink
11 May – 7 June 2012
Official opening Friday 11th May at 8 pm by Siobhan Mulcahy





Barry Foley is a native of Tipperary town but is now based in the Burren, Co Clare. In this exhibition Barry explores intriguing questions about science and scientific exploration.
“Not since Victorian times science and scientific exploration have captured the public’s attention, nor has it been more controversial. The world is at a juncture; Global Warming, Economic and Cultural disaffection. Has scientific evolution contributed to the situation we now find ourselves in? Can science bridge these gaps and aid in the solution to such problems?”

The Victorians were impressed by science and progress, and felt that they could improve society through discovery in the very same way they were advancing society through technology. Is it possible that our outlook on life and the world can be changed by looking back? Back to a time when science was met with romanticism and wondrous excitement? Can a more nostalgic perspective open a door to an accessible modern relationship with science?

An inspiration for his work is Charles Quartermaine a scientist, explorer and artist. He received his Doctorate in Quantum Anthropology from Harvard in 2008 and is best known for the discovery of the Higgs Boson Field, which not only confirmed the multi-verse space time theory but opened the door (literally) to inter-dimensional travel. “His work deals with current research in Cosmology and Quantum Physics, and is trying to reveal the very essence of our world. To challenge what we think we know to be true. Influenced by Victorian Plate Photography and the era itself Charles displays his work believing that we all possess this sense of shared history”

Barry received his Degree in Sculpture from the Crawford College of Art and Design, Cork in 2004, he had numerous shows before gaining a Masters Degree in Fine Art (Virtual Realities) from the National College of Art and Design. He has taken part in numerous exhibitions and has works in Private Collections both in Ireland and Europe.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

North Indian Classical Music and the Foreign Phenomenon


In the gallery  4th May 8pm   a concert, small talk and show of a short 9 minute film.



North Indian Classical Music and the Foreign Phenomenon
:Musical conversations






This event explores the unique experiences of foreigners undertaking serious study of North Indian Classical Music.  Beginning with a discussion by Australian born Mattu Noone, who is a long time student of the North Indian 25 stringed lute called the sarode, this evening will give the audience an insight not only of the music of North India but the physical, emotional and mental challenges of it's discipline.  Dara O' Brien, a Cork based sitar player, will also present ideas from his recent PHD material on the spiritual beliefs of North Indian musicians.  A short film entitled, We are Nocturnal Animals, will be presented which outlines the experience of the concert season in Kolkata, West Bengal.



Finally, Mattu, Dara and tabla player, Sadanand Magee, will present a recital of North Indian instrumental music.  This item will be a jugal bundi or conversation between sarode and sitar. 

Friday, April 20, 2012

Depth



DEPTH


FETAC Art Exhibition


Ennistymon Vocational School        

April 27th – May 3rd 2012

The annual end of year Art show by the FETAC Level 5 and 6 students of Ennistymon Vocational School 


 opening this Thursday April 26th at 7pm.


The exhibition is a culmination of the years work. The title and theme of the exhibition is 'Depth' which represents the many ways the students looked at their art this year.
depth n 1 the extent, measurement or distance from top to the bottom, from the inner to the outer, downwards, backwards, or inwards. 2 intensity of thought or objects, emotion, silence colour etc. 3 the intellectual ability to penetrate deeply into ideas.
The collection demonstrates the self expression and skills development of the course participants and this is clearly seen in the variety and exploration of media and subject matter. Ceramics, sculpture, textiles, painting and drawing unite to make an eclectic, bold and exciting body of work.
The FETAC Level 5 and 6 Art course in Ennistymon is a full time course running from September to May each year. It is open to anyone who has an interest in, and wishes to expand their knowledge and skills in art. The course is always well subscribed and appeals to both mature students and school leavers who wish to explore their creativity or embark on art as a career. If you are interested in joining the group this September contact Ennistymon Vocational School on 065 7071375 http://www.artroomennistymonvs.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

VAI Info Clinic at the Courthouse Gallery Friday 4th May from 12pm to 2.45pm



On Friday the 4th of May 2012 Aideen Barry, Western Representative for Visual Artists Ireland will host a VAI Info Clinic at the Ennistymon Courthouse. This is the second time the artist has run a VAI Info Clinic and follows on from the success of the last clinic in 2008. 
The Clinic is open to all artists, art students, artist led initiatives, curators and cultural practioners working in the visual arts. Aideen is keen to meet everyone and to have a chat about the needs and concerns of visual artists in the Clare region. The Clinic is an informal way for you to come and find out about the Visual Artists Ireland Organisation: its professional development courses, recent opportunities and information on the services that the organisation provided for artists and organisations.

Aideen Barry is a full time practicing visual artist as well as the western representative for VAI she also Lectures in Limerick School of Art and Galway Mayo Institute of Technology. 

The clinic runs from 12pm to 2.45pm and is free for all.
For further information on the VAI please visit www.visualartists.ie

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Tom Portman Concert


Tom Portman
At the Courthouse Gallery, Ennistymon
Friday 20th April 8.30pm
Admission €8  concession €5
Multi-instrumentalist, performer and songwriter Tom Portman will be bringing his talents to the Courthouse Gallery in Ennistymon on Friday 20th of April at 8.30pm. €8, €5 conc.
Playing acoustic, electric guitar, Dobro and lap steel, Tom presents a wide repertoire. His compositions draw on many global styles yet have a distinct flavour of their own. Last year he launched his second solo album, At One, with a sell-out show in Galway's Town Hall Theatre. This self-produced collection features instrumental compositions, songs and arrangements of traditional Irish tunes for fingerstyle guitar and Dobro.
He regularly performs around Ireland from small venues to festivals such as the Electric Picnic and the DLR Festival of world cultures. Internationally, Tom has toured in Poland where he played the Suwalki Blues festival. Portman has also played venues in the UK, North Italy and the South of France. Tom will bring his unique style to the Ennistymon Courthouse Gallery.