'A Festive Review' - Christmas Show 2009 opening Friday 27th November at 8pm

Ennistymon Courthouse Gallery presents ‘A Festive Review’ Christmas Show, celebrating the creative achievements of the past year.

Courthouse Gallery is launching the annual Christmas show on Friday 27^th November at 8pm with live music from local musicians Christy Barry and Colin Nee. This is a free event and all are welcome to attend.  A Festive Review will run from Friday 27^th November until Thursday 14^th January 2010. The gallery is open Tuesday – Saturday, from 12pm – 4pm daily. No admission fee.

A Festive Review celebrates the creative achievements of the past year. The gallery is proud to look back on 2009, highlighting 23 artists who contributed to the artistic excellence and success of the gallery in 2009. Each artist will show new works which will include paintings, drawings, photography, ceramics, and sculpture. The opening provides a wonderful opportunity to see the work and meet the artists. The show highlights the work of local artists, with a national and international aspect.

Participating artists:

Fiona Woods

Sara Foust

Michael Hanrahan

Sinead O'Connell

Fergus Tighe

Vicky Lennie

Judy O’Sullivan

Fiona O’Dwyer

Jacqui Hersey

Fergus Cronin

Frank Golden

Dessie Mc Loughlin

Niall McCormack

Jan Ploeg

Josephine Geaney

Marianne Potterton

Mary Foudy O'Halloran

Madeleine Irene Smyth

Robin Grace

Maria Kerin

Valerie Driscoll

Brid Harhen

Olga Leszczynska

For further information, please contact Ennistymon Courthouse Gallery, Parliament Street, Ennistymon, Co. Clare, or telephone 065 707 1630, or email: ennistymoncourthousegallery@gmail.com.

One week left to come see "Dress Drawings" by Judy O'Sullivan

One week left to come see "Dress Drawings" by Judy O'Sullivan! 

An installation of drawings and projected images by the Lisdoonvarna based artist.

 

Mutual Exchange - by Clare artists in the Red Couch space

Mutual Exchange is an exhibition of work by Clare artists in the Red Couch space at The Courthouse Gallery in Ennistymon.

Each of the six artists based in the Courthouse studios have invited another artist to show a work and to select a work by their host, the mutual exchange described by the title.

This exciting concept, initiated by Trudi van der Elsen of the Courthouse Gallery, is a way of extending the connections between the Courthouse Gallery and artists in the area. It also opens up possibilities for the studio artists to work in a new way. A diverse range of practices will be on show.

'Alightment'

Studio-based artist Fiona Woods has invited well-known artist and curator Maria Kerin to collaborate with her on the creation of a new time-based sculptural/performance work. This piece of work will evolve and change over the course of the exhibition.

The exhibition will also feature work by the acclaimed painter Vickie Lennie, who has invited sculptor Barbara Roder to exhibit.

 

Local artists Sara Foust shows recent 

paintings alongside her invitee 

Debbie Horn.

The delicate ceramic works of Sinead O’ Connell, which have proven very popular at previous exhibitions, will be shown alongside her invited artist Sara Comerford.

Michael Hanrahan shows a

recent painting alongside invitee 

Mary O’Brien

 

Two photographers – studio artist Olga Leszczynska 

and her guest Jarek Szczucki – 

will bring an international dimension to the exhibition.

Mutual Exchange takes place to coincide with the exhibition of new work in the main gallery by North Clare artist Judy O’ Sullivan.

Dress Drawings by Judy O'Sullivan

Observe the process of drawing over time  as the artist Judy O'Sullivan will do a large drawing on the wall of the Courthouse Gallery

stage 1

stage 2

stage3

At the Launch of Judy O'Sullivan's new exhibition Dress Drawings

The official Launch of Judy O'Sullivan'exhibition held on the 24th of October at 4 pm, was a great success!

Professor Timothy Emlyn Jones, Dean of the Burren College of Art opened Judy's Show

 

Dress Drawings - New work by Judy O'Sullivan

Dress Drawings is an installation of drawings and projected images by Clare based artist Judy O'Sullivan. The artist responded to the Courthouse space by making work which varies in scale from tiny drawings on canvas and paper to a large scale wall drawing which will be made in situ and which the artist will develop for the duration of the exhibition.
















 'Clothes', according to Virginia Woolf, 'have more important offices than merely   to keep us warm; they change our view of the world and the world's view of us'.

These are drawings about what wraps, shields, protects and transforms the self. The dress is a skin of fiction, a fiction of appearance. When the fiction is played out the dress is left empty. It is the abandoned 'skin' - dress, sea urchin, mermaid's purse which fascinates by its beauty and strangeness, empty of the life it once held, evidence of something that was. 

The work began with drawings of an old black dress, made of crepe with a sequinned detail on the upper bodice given to the artist by her grandmother, a small farmer in West Cork, who was fond of the occasional 'a bit of style'. At the time the artist was also drawing a mermaid's purse, the empty egg case of a skate, shark or ray in which the young fish gestate, which she found on a beach. Working on both sets of drawings she made a connection between the dress and mermaid's purse, which she began to explore through drawing, painting and photography. Other elements of 'wrapping' like a lace veil and embroidered apron also found their way into her work.


The drawings are made with the simplest of materials on translucent paper originally made for wrapping butter. The paper itself is like a skin, wrinkling under the watery drawing and absorbing the drawing into itself. The paper, water, pigment and mark all merge into something new and surprising. Some are layered onto canvas. A video piece reflects this process and reveals another layer to this delicate, tactile exhibition.


This is a unique opportunity to observe the process of drawing over time as the artist will do a large scale drawing on the wall of the gallery and document its growth.

Opening of Fiona O'Dwyer's exhibition 'Strange all the rooms we've lived in'

Photographs from the opening of Fiona O'Dwyer's exhibition 'Strange all the rooms we've lived in'. A great night was had by all and thanks again to all who attended.

The opening took place on the 18th September and the exhibition runs until 19th October.

Poetry Night on Thurs 1st Oct at 9pm (National Poetry Day)

Salmon Poetry in association with Poetry Ireland presents an Evening of Poetry as part of All-Ireland Poetry Day in the Courthouse Gallery.

Featuring Salmon Poets:

Celeste Auge
Gerry Hanberry
Stephen Roger Powers
Jean Kavanagh

With music by Dan Jeffery.

On Thursday 1st October @ 9pm.

Free Event and all welcome to attend!

Free Outdoor Film Screening

As part of the “Strange the rooms we've all lived in” a new multimedia exhibition by Fiona O’Dwyer in the Courthouse Gallery Ennistymon from 18 Sept - 19 Oct, there will be a special outdoor screening of “I Was Happy Here” on Wednesday 23rd September at 8.00 pm at Egans Pub, Liscannor, Co. Clare. The film was shot in Co. Clare in 1965 and was directed by Desmond Davis and starred Cyril Cusack and Sara Miles.

Time: 8.00pm
Date: Wednesday 23rd September 2009
Where: Egan’s Pub in Liscannor
Admission: Free!

A collection of archive material from the film will be exhibited in Egan’s pub at the same time.

The screening will take place outdoors under a canopy with outdoor heating, but please be advised to dress warmly. Put your fold up chair in the boot in case it is needed! The event is weather dependent and as a result may need to be moved indoors or rescheduled.

For more information and updates on film and video screenings and related events see fionaodwyerart.blogspot.com

Recording Studio Open Day - Thurs 24th Sept 10am - 3pm

Ennistymon Courthouse Recording Studio is holding an open day on Thursday 24th September from 10am - 3pm. All are welcome to call in and have any questions you might have answered. A chance to have a good look around!

Questions you might have...
What is the Courthouse Recording Studio?
Who can use it?
How much does it cost?
When can you use it?
How do I book it?

Recording: Live Demos, Bands, Traditional Music, Singer Songwriters

Mixing / Remixing
Mastering
Production
Audio Restoration
Voiceovers
Eductional Programmes