Arts-Crafts-Durrow-2014aAs part of Durrow Scarecrow Festival, which will be held from Sunday 27th July to Monday 4th August, we are reminding all local Artists and Crafts people of this year’s Exhibition and Sale takes place during the Scarecrow Festival. (A list of articles on Exhibition is can be viewed by clicking [HERE])

For more information please contact Kathleen Flynn on (086) 8263368 or Mary Dowling on (087) 2200199.

The following Artists feature in the Exhibition (amongst others who are not mentioned below…)

KATHLEEN GARRETT: Kathleen Garrett is a native of County Tipperary and now resides in Portlaosie. She studied Art Practice at Glamorgan University in Wales. She paints a wide range of subjects in various media – oils, acrylic, gauche, watercolour and pastel. She is best known for her romantic landscape paintings. Kathleen has been teaching in adult education for many years. She has exhibited widely around Ireland and Great Britain. A large number of her paintings are in private collections in Ireland, Great Britain, America and Sweden. She has sponsored many equestrian events and is influenced by three of the great masters, George Stubbs, John Constable and Paul Henry. When she is not at her easel, she is organizing exhibition for local art groups, writing poetry and prose and has been published in three Laois Anthologies and broadcast on Radio.

Arts-Crafts-Durrow-2014bPEGGY LEEDER: Peggy is a Canadian living in Abbeyleix and has worked with groups as a facilitator in Ireland for a number of years. She is now retired and paints for pleasure with The Druid Art Group in Portlaoise. She has shown and sold work in Ireland, Canada and Australia. Mostly she uses acrylics as a medium but occasionally experiment with watercolour or collage. Most of her inspiration comes from her beautiful surroundings.

MARY RING: Mary Ring is from Portlaoise. Mary is a member of The Druid Art Group in Portlaoise that meet every week and has an annually exhibition. She generally paints in acrylics but recently has worked with oils. Landscapes are a particular favorite of hers to paint. Her other interests include crochet, walking and when she is not spending time with her family, she is also a member of her local ICA.

FRANK PARKER: A member of The Druid Art Group in Portlaoise since 2007, Frank paints landscapes and old buildings. “I like exploring the colour and textures of brick, stone and foliage as revealed by the play of sunlight”, he says. Three of the four paints in this exhibition are based on photographs he took during a visit to County Wicklow in November 2013. The fourth is based on a photograph if one of his wife’s flower arranging books. Frank lives in Stradbally.

BREDA KELLY: A native of Emo and now living in Durrow, Breda has a huge interest in photography and as a result has moved onto paintings. She facilitates classes under the tutelage of Mary Delaney – Art Teacher. The medium she works with is acrylics and she finds this very versatile.

KATHLEEN MCDONALD: Kathleen is a native of Kilkenny living just outside Castlecomer. She is a pupil of Mary Delaney – Art Teacher for the past number of years. She paints in the medium of Acrylics and enjoy her time this hobby.

MAURA RAFFERTY: Maura is a native of Roscommon but now living in Durrow for many years. She is a pupil of Mary Delaney – Art Teacher and works with acrylics. She paints still life and landscapes. She enjoys the social aspect of the art class and also works with Pyrography (which is the art of burning imagery onto wood.

BILL DAVIS: Bill is a native of Newcastle on Tyne but now living in Mountmellick. He paints abstract paintings using PVA glue and acrylic paint to achieve the end result. He also paints watercolour flowers and enjoys doing upholstery.

MAUREEN KAVANAGH: Maureen is from Cullahill and has studied with Mary Delaney – Art Teacher. She paints with acrylic and enjoys painting landscapes and nature scenes. Maureen also enjoys craft making and cookery and is a member of Cullahill ICA for the past ten years.

JONATHAN DUNNE: Jonathan is a pupil of Scoil Mhuire National School in Abbeyleix. He loves making designs and his piece is a drawing of on of his trainer shoes.

TRUDI KILEEN: Trudi is a landscape, watercolour artist. She is also accomplished in detailed line drawings, many of which were used by The Irish Times in conjunction with historical articles written by her husband John Kileen during the 1980’s. In 2005 Trudi and John retired to live in Heywood village, where Trudi has captured the beautiful Heywood Gardens and its environs in her collection of watercolour paintings. She is currently working on a small collection of “Hunt” pictures, set in the historical town of Abbeyleix.

LAURA AMY DUNNE: Art is Laura’s passion. She finds great tranquility in the process of making and creating. She considers the world a wonder and every theme a chance to explore and question it visually. She has studied art for the past two years and it gives her great joy and contentment. She is looking forward to continuing her artistic journey, growing and learning to explore new themes through mixed media. “I wish my work to convey a sense of myself and attempt to share with the viewer those feelings I’ve put into the work, as well as the wonder and satisfaction that each piece has given me, in their creation” she says.

ANN BRENNAN: Ann is a self-taught artist who works from her home based studio in Ballingarry, County Tipperary. Her preferred medium is oils and her work is primarily concerned with the study of light and its relationship to landscape and seascape. She tends to explore the natural beauty of our country and locality. She is inspired by the way it invokes different moods and memories. Her landscapes are often described as evocative and captivating. Her work boldly departs from the cardinal rules of fore, middle and background and instead uses the background to a much greater effect by creating immensely striking and dramatic skies. Her use of a fluidity and interplay of light creates the illusion of distance and depth, which combines, with the use of earthy tones in the foreground. This sense of vast space created from the colours, light and illusion achieves a serenity and tranquility that beguiles the viewer.

MAIREAD NI DHUINN: Mairead’s childhood is full of memories of Celtic Knots and being inspired by her Grandmother’s work and as an adult she has continued this family tradition. She had always enjoyed sketching but recently she decided to broaden her skills set by taking part in and gradating with a distinction from an Art and Skills course in Abbeyleix. Her work veers towards portraiture and abstract art using charcoal, cote pencils, acrylics, oils and watercolour. She also enjoys working with mixed media and the world of possibilities it opens up for her. She likes to create pieces that the viewer can interact with and have a connection with.

“As I work with my pieces they take on a life of their own which even surprises me and this is what makes art so interesting,” she says. Mairead hopes to continue her studies at Portlaoise College this coming year.

DANIEL HIBBITS: David is a fifteen year old and a student in Mountrath Community School. His work is mainly multi media 3D pieces made from recycled materials, which he deconstructs and then reconstructs, into new works of art. This is David’s second year to exhibit at the festival.

AMY MOONEY: In Amy’s art, she likes to capture the beauty of objects, places and both still life and life drawings. Different mediums (oils, watercolours, acrylics) allow her to express a variety of ideas and she has worked on her practice diligently for many years. Amy is a pass pupil of Abbeyleix VEC, Art and Design Course.

SYLVIA PARKINSON BROWN: Based in the lush Co.Kilkenny countryside, Sylvia paints the animals around her. Her studio is surrounded by farmland with horses dipping their heads over the fence at one side and dairy cattle grazing to the other side. She enjoys the honest nature of animals and often finds humour (albeit unintended) in their expression. She regularly exhibits in Ireland but increasingly in the UK, and is currently developing designs based on my paintings.

EDEL TIERNEY: Edel is a self-taught watercolour artist. She grew up in Jenkinstown Park Kilkenny and was surrounded by its beautiful nature as a child. This love of all things natural can be seen in her loose and natural painting style and subject matter. She takes her inspiration from all things beautiful in the natural world. Edel adore flowers and her love of this subject is reflected in each stroke of colour applied to the sheet of paper. As well as painting floral works she also depicts natural, moving and simple paintings of life drawings in a cartoon style. She uses her talent to depict any image asked of her in a simple and childlike fashion. She has a love of painting and the joy her paintings brings to others is truly her inspiration.

SOPHIE HAYES: Sophie Hayes is a native of Ballycallan Co Kilkenny. She now resides in Lisbigney Abbeyleix with her husband and two children. In 2009 She took up painting as a hobby. Sophie started painting pictures of her dogs, landscapes and birds. Her preferred medium is acrylics and oils and she favours a realistic approach in trying to truly capture the look and personality of the subject. When producing her paintings, the artist concentrates on providing an acute insight into its subject.

MARIAN PHELAN: Marian’s first passion in the field of art is painting. She prefers to work with oils but also has worked with watercolours. She is influenced by nature, her love of country life and the inaction between man and nature. Her work captures and records this way of life. She paints only from life/nature scenes but photographs sometimes support this.

ANNA NAGLE: Anna is a founder of the Willow School of Art in Blessington, Co. Wicklow, which is devoted to encouraging spontaneous creativity and personal development through Art Synthesis. Anna’s work is largely spontaneous and unplanned and she is passionate about sharing the joy she experiences through this way of creating, with others, in her workshops. Anna’s mandalas on show were created in this way and brought great calm in the making of them. The artist also enjoys painting the beautiful environment in which she lives as seen in her two watercolours here.

MARGOT USSHER: It was Margot training in authentic movement that brought her to her artistic talents and she has been painting since 2006. She has painted in oils and watercolours, mainly landscapes. In 2013, she created a collection of abstract mixed media pieces called ‘The Hand of God’. This involved using preserved pieces from nature and sewing them together on a canvas with wools, twigs, threads and beads. Now she has returned to her roots in pen and ink. Her latest exhibition of ‘Scenes from County Wicklow’ was exhibited in the 2014 Dunlavin Arts Festival and was a collection of sketches and oils of places in Wicklow.

BONNIE CLANCY: As a student currently studying Ceramic Design in LSAD, Bonnie designs and create pieces within a wide variety of mixed media that develops through a long process including drawing, etching, textile, manipulation, painting and handcrafting. Her work is mainly inspired by episodic memories to which she has a strong personal attachment.

ORLA MCDONAGH: Orla lives and works in Laois as a portrait and mural artist completing commissions in Ireland and the U.K. Within her figurative work the face predominates (both human and animal) attempting to capture emotions and depth. She works in acrylic and watercolour paint as well as pencil. Her collection includes a study of the Irish landscape in particular Laois and the Midlands explored through he medium of black ink and wash.

SUZANNE FINN: Having taken voluntary redundancy in 2012, Suzanne wanted to do something different other than working in an office so she applied for a Skills course in Abbeyleix FEC in September 2013 and pass with a distinction this June. During her time there, she discovered her love for Pyrography. It was a slow process but her skills with the hot pen have improved over the past year. She has gotten several commissions since and sold some of her more popular pieces.

DARLENE GARR: Born in the USA, Internationally known Artist, Darlene Garr has been painting professionally for over 30 years and with more than 150 Solo and Group Shows has received wide recognition for her talent, boasting collectors from all over the world.  Her work is a popular choice for Corporates, including International sponsorships by Monsanto, BASF, Bristol Meyers, Iona Technologies, Friend’s First Financial and Lucent Technologies, to name a few. Since arriving in Ireland over 17 years ago, Darlene has added Hayes & Higgins and many businesses in Kilkenny and Waterford to the list of collectors of her work. As a self-taught artist, Darlene has approached her art with abandoned intuition and as her painting continues to evolve, it is still in pursuit of the same goal, to capture that feeling of mystery and awe that compels her to paint.

CAROL BOOTH: Carol’s recent body of work started at the beginning of the year for an exhibition in Chennai, India. She travels a lot and is always aware of the different skies on different continents – but believes that Ireland has one all of it’s own – a more muted, greyer light that elsewhere. “It is what is responsible for our beautiful landscape, so profound to our psyche”, she says. This work is a statement of that light. Each piece is imaginary but based on a place be it the Cliffs of Mohar, a bog in Laois or Sandymount strand at full tide. Her work was part of the Spring show in the Ib Jorgensen Gallery, Dublin, can currently be seen at the Blackbird Gallery, Kilkenny. She is working towards a show in London later this year. She lives and works in Laois.

MARY SLEVIN: Mary is an emerging artist from Killenard, Co. Laois. Her work is personal in nature. Whether it is drawing inspired from the landscape she grew up in or where she lives today. She loves tapping into family history or more recently reflecting on her time she spent in Graignamanagh, Co. Kilkenny as a child. Mary’s work contains a strong narrative element.  “When I create a pieces of art its consumes me and I strive to create what I see, feel and touch,” she says.

JELENA STRAIZIENE: “In each of us there is a certain part where there are no taboos and conventions, where the main thing is the imagination and the freedom to express our feeling and emotions.” Jelena believes this and tries to express these thoughts through her paintings. She looks a the everyday objects and shapes, city light in raindrops, architectural fragments of old streets and with the moods invoked by these images, she not only experiments but also learns about the world around her and she is grateful for this.

BROTHER MAURICE P. MURPHY: Brother Maurice taught Physics during his years in Mallow and Ballyfin College. When he retired from teaching in 1990, he took up an interest in Bog oak. He has trained with Mary Delaney in FEC and continued with her in the Cuisle Centre. His pieces vary in size and themes.

ALICE BRADISH: Alice is a native of Abbeyleix and paints with acrylics. She like doing flowers and scenery and also life drawing or painting. She attended the VEC in Abbeyleix for three years learning her craft. She has exhibited in Abbeyleix Credit Union, Abbeyleix VEC and also the County Hall in Portlaoise.

ANDY WALSH: Andy is from Durrow in Co. Laois and studied art at Grennan Mills Thomastown, and Waterford I.T. in the early 1990’s. He has always enjoyed working with watercolours and ink, and more recently he moved into the medium of digital art and illustration. He loves this medium as it allows an artist to combine and develop conventional artwork, or creates entirely new images with endless possibilities.

CIARA WALSH MCINTYRE: Ciara studied art for her Leaving Cert but chose to study property economics at college. She has continued to draw for her own enjoyment. Her favourite medium is oil pastels. She spent a period of time in East Africa, which has had an influence on her style. She loves the use of vibrant colour to create emotional pieces.

KATHLEEN FLYNN: Kathleen started painting in 2011 when Billy Dollard started a beginner’s class in Bob’s Bar, Durrow. Kathleen likes to work in a variety of medium but mostly works in acrylic. She paints from scenes and places around her home in Durrow.

BECKY PIDGEON: Becky’s work is based on a series of responses to a sculpture piece found in the Hunt Museum in Limerick. Her pieces mainly concentrate on exploring colour and texture using different paint techniques and tonal qualities. This work is a more expressive way of painting and an exploration into details that she found on the sculpture.

CAROLINE PIDGEON: Caroline paints as a hobby usually in acrylic as she loves the freedom of this medium. In the future she hopes to explore other media. Her paintings are usually landscapes. Since starting to paint she has become more aware of colour in our surroundings.

JOSEPH PHELAN: Joseph usually works in watercolour paints, but sometimes trys other medium. He enjoys painting animals and portraits and he studies art at Heywood Community School in Ballinakill. He hopes to study art in NCAD in Dublin after his Leaving Cert.

MARY MCLOUGHLIN: Mary lives in Ballyragget, Kilkenny and has been painting on and off since childhood. A section win in The Texaco Children’s Art Competition in National School fuelled an interest to continue studying art up to Leaving Cert. Since then, she has produced pieces as gifts or on request and lately has sold a number of paintings. Previous pieces included watercolour, acrylic and oil both with brush and palette knife. She has also tried mixed media and fusion styles. Subject matter is drawn from everywhere and anywhere and includes still life, landscape, seascapes, flowers and especially anything that might appear unusual. Styles range from realistic to abstract, smooth to impasto.

MARY DUNNE: Mary is a native of Portlaoise. She has had a love of art and crafts for many years and has given classes at various stages throughout her career. Since retiring, Mary has renewed her interest in art and has participated in an art, craft and design course and a specialist painting courses in Ireland and the U.K. Mary’s love of nature is the main influence for her works, which are of landscapes, animals and birds, mostly in acrylics. Mary has exhibited in a number of locations, notably Dun Laoghaire. She has taken part in-group exhibitions in Sheppards in Durrow and has a yearly exhibition in Athy and every six months in McDonagh Junction in Kilkenny.

MARLENA TOBIN: Nine-year-old Marlena is a pupil of our Lady’s Meadow in Durrow. She is very artistic and she likes TV characters in particular The Simpsons. When older she would like to pursue a career in the art world, following in the footsteps of her Grandparents and Parents.