Myself and my fellow Luggage Doors Operating members are taking our peculiar brand of music and visual art hi-jinks to Cork City Friday 29th January. Organised by Kate O’Shea and others from the Limerick Printmakers, in collaboration with Sample Studios of Cork, there should be something for everyone. It’s all kicking off at 6.30pm so do come along if you’re round, or even make the trip especially!
It’s a homecoming of sorts for Kevin ‘Kevlar’ O’Keefe, main axe-man with the group, so we’ll be trying hard not to let the side down. Also we welcome Shannon on concertina and Liam on the fiddle for part of the set, an ongoing collaboration with two other Fine Artists.
My good friends in Steambox in School Street, Dublin 8 are kindly facilitating the Dublin launch of Mathilda’s Tale. We’re hoping to have a good crowd and a bit of craic, and hopefully give our Dublin based friends a chance to come along and see the book and some cat related drawings.
It’s all about informality here, so if you’re about do drop in!
I was flattered to be asked by my good friend Seán Lynch to provide a voice-over for his commission representing Ireland at the 2015 Venice Biennale. I provided the voice for a John Burke sculpture, alongside Gina Moxley as the main Narrator.
It is a brilliant show, and if ye can’t make it to Venice, it will travel around Ireland subsequently.
Dave O’ Shea, Chimera Gallery (photo courtesy Chimera Gallery)
The Chimera Gallery in my hometown of Mullingar, Co.Westmeath have kindly agreed to facilitate the Midlands launch of my illustrated story, Mathilda & the Belligerent Blackbird. The event itself will be a casual affair and open to all in the surrounds of the spacious and well lit gallery, which houses some great contemporary art and craft (particularly paintings and ceramics).
I called into Dave O’Shea the proprietor a number of months ago, on the advice of my good friend Gemma Dardis a Ceramicist based in Limerick, but from Westmeath. She recommended the ethos of the man and the venue, and I concur. Dave has been very gracious in providing this platform, and I wish him every success, and I would thoroughly recommend regular visits to the emporium.
On a side note, the aforementioned Gemma Dardis will have her own show of ceramics in the Chimera in October, for which my band Luggage Doors Operating will provide a live soundtrack of sorts. Given Gemma’s love of Joe Dolan, expect some sort of tribute to him at some stage (practice going well of course!).
32 Oliver Plunkett St, Mullingar, Co. Westmeath
087 803 8357
I’m honoured to be part of this show in the Limerick School of Art&Design’s Church Gallery. The show is in memory of our too-early departed friend Orlagh Spain, and the culmination of a lot of work and organisation of her many friends.
Excitement is building around the launch of Mathilda’s Tale, a 12 page book written and illustrated by myself, taking place on March 16th at the Civic Trust in Askeaton, Co. Limerick at 8pm. The good folk of the town have been most kind to me over the years of my association with Welcome to the Neighborhood ( Askeaton Contemporary Arts Festival ), and local tour guide Anthony Sheehy and Anita Guinane particularly deserve my thanks.
Mathilda ( née Squealer, née Cáit ), a fluffy tabby cat along with her brother Tricky were repatriated to the small town from my shed in Thomondgate about 5 years ago after some ingenious trapping. She found a fantastic new home with the Horrigan family, but in 2013 a Bold Blackbird took umbrage at her presence and proceeded to harass her at every turn. What happened next you’ll have to peruse the book to find out!
Poor oul’ Mathilda being harassed by the BoldBlackbird
My sincere thanks to Anne and Michele Horrigan and Seán Lynch for providing a nice home for the pair, and indeed for looking after me over the years. Also my thanks to Chris of McKerns printing in Limerick for their excellent and accommodating services.
A big shout out also to Allan Hughes, a Welcome to the Neighborhood Alumnus who will present his work simultaneously on the night in question, with work pertaining to ‘The Emergency’ as the World War 2 period in Ireland was called, and local circumstances at the time.
If you can come the following day, my good friend and ( also ) fellow Askeaton Alumnus Susan MacWilliam will have a float or variation thereof in the St. Patrick’s Day parade. It’s inspired by the fall of a meteorite on the town in the 1800’s and should be great fun. Lets hope for good weather!!
Myself and my good friend Tia enjoying a drop of tea.
There was a great buzz on the afternoon of December 13th for the closing day/presentation of all the Dogs’ Tales (see Dogs’ Tales Page). 38 prints in all were on show in the Kiosk with the public and participants all invited. A mildly chaotic feel to the proceedings was provided by the presence of a number of our canine subjects, some saying hello for the first time.
Larry the King Charles had to stoop very low to hear the latest Hedgehog gossip.
For the cold but bright afternoon we had some delicious mulled wine from ‘Canteen’ in Limerick. As is customary, I did have a few words of thanks for all involved, with a comic ‘dog-related’ pun theme. Sincere thanks to the participants, my new four legged friends, Limerick City of Culture, and all who took the time to engage with the project.
A lovely crowd of two and four legged Patrons turned out.
To mark Contact Studios 17th year we invited previous members to exhibit work alongside our current members. The Studios were cleared and cleaned and presented as a gallery space.
26 Alumni along with our current 14 members partook, and there was a great crossover of the Contact Generations. There was a great response to the show, and hopefully this network will grow and consolidate over time.
On the night I exhibited a 2x2ft (60x60cm) work which forms part of Skippy’s Tale. It’s a tonal piece, depicting a moment when 3 of Skippy’s kittens observe a snowy landscape for the first time, and contemplate venturing out into it. The collage will form part of the illustrated aspect of a book, which will be the second after Mathilda’s Tale (of which more in the short term).
Limerick School of Art & Design host current students and Alumni June 7th weekend. As part of this celebration Luggage doors Operating, a composite band of a patchwork of Limerick Studios will present music to this arty audience.
Pictured above is the cover sleeve depicting the members (l-r), Carl Doran (Highwayman), Pamela Dunne (Sailor), Rory Prout (Dam Builder), and of course Kevin O’Keefe (Starship Navigator). Expect some original songs, and some original approaches to covers.
Artist Seán Healy and Askeaton Cotemporary Art’s Michele Horrigan view Cáit’s Tale – Moonlight in Monilea in the RHA Summer Show
There was a great attendance over two open nights for the show, thousands have already seen it. Delighted to be in such good company, and a prime hanging space.
I bade adieu to Dublin’s Fair City with a heavy heart.
This chapter, a 3 x3 ft (90 x 90 cm) oil painting will be displayed as part of the RHA Summer show in Dublin, commencing May 27th, public Opening May 26th. She’s pictured here all ready to depart in Normoyle & Frawley’s Gallery and Framing, who did a great job as usual. My thanks to Gary Coyle for facilitating my participation in this prestigious event. My thanks also to my Artist friend Seán Healy (in advance) for his hosting and critical skills.
Continuing on the theme of Cats’ Tales (see Cats’ Tales Page and March 2013 post), this painting imagines Cáit wandering around Monilea by Moonlight. Monilea, a rural area in Co. Westmeath is where I spent many of my teenage years, and was the subject of many Landscapes I painted. It seemed apt to combine the two subjects, both lost times, existing in a half-remembered, dream-like area of my consciousness.
Cáit’s Tale – Moonlight in Monilea