Design Initiative at Louth Craftmark

Louth is a county particularly rich in craftspeople, and Louth Craftmark was formed to promote and support their work. The majority of Irish craftspeople are self employed and, while entrepreneurial skills come naturally to some, not every craftsperson is born with the ability to run their own business. Working alone can be isolating, paperwork can be confusing, and it is often difficult to find the most appropriate market. These are issues that are clearly tackled by Louth Craftmark, which in partnership with County Down Crafts forms the cross-border initiative, Craftmark. The business aspect of craft, which can be a stumbling block for many makers, is addressed by a programme that takes issues like economic hardship, lack of entrepreneurship skills, and social barriers into account. The Louth Craftmark Programme 2006 -2007, funded by the European Union through the EU Programme for Peace and Reconciliation, offers practical training and support to craftspeople living and working in County Louth. The newly-formed Louth Craftmark Designers Network represents the designer-makers of the county and aims to nurture the flourishing craft sector, as well as to create a clear marketing vision. Louth Craftmark at Highlanes Gallery, St Laurence Street, Drogheda, is a retail outlet designed to showcase and promote the collective work of the many designers and makers living and working in County Louth, such as Edward Cook, Andrea Hayes, Patricia Murphy and Joe Lawlor. The gallery was established with the help of funding from the Louth County Enterprise Fund and Louth Leader, and profits from the outlet will be re-invested into the local craft sector. 'The diversity of craft discipline in the area provided the perfect launch pad for a retail outlet of this kind,' says Sarah Daly, Craft Development Officer for Louth Craftmark. 'The Irish consumer continues to differentiate between 'made by hand' and 'made by factory' and is looking for a unique creative range of products which they will find right on their doorstep.'

Another focus for Louth craftspeople -Bridge Street Studios -is located in an 18-century building opposite St Nicholas' church in Bridge Street, Dundalk. Founded by four ceramic artists in 1996, its main function is as workspace for the ten members, who share resources and equipment. Their work is available through the studio's Gateway Gallery on the first floor of the studio building. When it was first set up, Bridge Street Studios was the first group studio in County Louth. The current members, who work in a variety of different artistic disciplines including ceramics, painting, textiles and jewellery, are: Sarah McKenna, Joanne McKenna, Frances Lambe, Gillian Callan, Fiona Thornton, Fiona Quigley, Linda Bailey, Louisa Goss, Ciara Agnew, John O'Connor, and Michele Haechler.
 
Leading Louth Design
With such creative resources supporting the region's craft community, Louth craftspeople are fast gaining the reputation of being a driving force in contemporary Irish design. Development has focused on a range of media, initiating the emergence of superior craftspeople across a broad spectrum of disciplines from furniture and jewellery to textiles and ceramics.
As the name of his company, Architectural Furniture, suggests, Joe Lawlor's hand-crafted contemporary furniture is strongly influenced by architectural forms. Using Irish woods whenever possible, he strives to reveal the inherent beauty of the wood in each of his pieces as they take shape, allowing truth of form in his materials to co-exist with the vision he holds for the creation of each piece. Nanette Ledwith is a decorative ceramic artist who specialises in making individual one-off plates and bowls, many of which are wall pieces. Treating the clay surface with the approach of a painter, Ledwith creates emotive images evocative of the Irish landscape, which are often inspired by the beauty of her own rural surroundings. Having trained in London and Dublin, and working in the jewellery industry for over twenty years, Garrett Mallon now works in his studio at the foot of the Cooley Mountains. He works with silver, gold, precious and semi-precious stones to create individual pieces which are inspired by his surroundings. He moulds and shapes the metal, contrasting textures to reflect nature's forms, and uses gemstones with rich colours to add vibrancy to the pieces. Millmount Designstore is the result of a collaboration between silversmith Elain Hanrahan and textile designer Mel Bradley. Exhibiting the work of its founders, this craft shop based in Drogheda also offers a valuable selection of contemporary work from craft artists all over the country. After training in London, Madrid and Florence, Cathy Prendergast returned to Dundalk in 1989 to set up her Leather Studio. Drawing inspiration from her passion for the medium she works in, Prendergast designs and makes contemporary handbags which combine beauty and functionality to create exquisite individual pieces.
 
Rowan Gillespie in Ireland park
Ireland Park, Toronto, was opened by President Mary McAleese on 21 June 2007. The park was designed as a Famine memorial by the Dublin-born architect Jonathan Kearns, a partner in Kearns Mancini Architects Inc. It is located on Eireann Quay, and honours the 38,000 Irish immigrants who arrived in Toronto in the summer of 1847, a time when the city's population was only 20,000. A twenty-five metre wall, which closes the park, is carved with the names of 675 identified immigrants who died after arriving in 1847. Contrasting with the rough, craggy stone landscape, a tall illuminated cylinder of stacked glass stands alongside three interactive computer screens which show the story of the park and the tragedy that it commemorates. Facing the city, five bronze sculptures by Rowan Gillespie show the gaunt figures of famine immigrants making their final landing in Canada.
 
Furniture Showcase at Kilcroney
The showrooms of Kilcroney Furniture, Bray, County Wicklow, appear, on approach, rather like military-style huts or billets. When Anny Verwijs first moved to Ireland from The Netherlands, forty years ago, she set up in business as a poultry farmer. Several years later, Verwijs decided to change from poultry to selling furnishings. The chicken coops were converted into a furniture warehouse, hence their rather unusual appearance, and ever since then have been used as a showcase for the furniture. Verwijs, who visits the important European furniture fairs, has a shrewd knowledge of the Irish and Continental interiors markets. She prides herself on honest quality of service: 'If I feel that a piece of furniture will be wrong for someone I will say so. I'd rather have no sale, than a wrong sale.' Verwijs shows a wide variety of styles; from the chic and classical to the solid and traditional.
 
A Woven Affair
A Woven Affair, the current exhibition at the Clodagh Design showroom, New York, features rugs by Irish-born designer Clodagh for Tufenkian Artisan Carpets and lighting by Leo Scarff Design. The title reflects on the woven nature of both rugs and the light fittings, but also on the longstanding collaboration of two Irish designers on different sides of the Atlantic. Although the original woven lights are made of strips of wood veneer, Scarff has recently expanded his repertoire to include the Poly-Fold pendants made from polycarbonate fused with textured paper to create the effect of a cascade of lace, the Poly-Freeform-Cylinder pendant and floor lamp made from frosted polycarbonate and stainless steel, and bamboo-cylinders created with natural bamboo. 'I like the idea of using small parts to assemble a larger piece. It's labour-intensive, but it enables you to make lots of different forms,' said Scarff. Clodagh (she is always known by her first name) is director of Clodagh Design, an internationally renowned architectural and interior design studio in Manhattan. Her numerous awards include Interior Design magazine's Top 100 Interior Designers in America (2000). She was also named one of the world's leading interior designers by Architectural Digest and inducted into the Interior Design Hall of Fame (both in 2005). She describes her designs as tactile and low on stuff. 'Our mission statement is to enhance life and spirit through timeless, responsible design. We're all about concrete floors and reclaimed wood.'
 
RDS Prizewinners
The highly regarded RDS National Crafts Competition and Student Awards has been held annually since 1968 to promote Irish craft and design. It is considered to be the major Irish crafts industry competition, and provides a unique opportunity for both professional and amateur craft designers to exhibit and promote their work at the same event. Open to craft workers living in Ireland and also to Irish designers based abroad, the prize fund is one of the largest in Europe, with a total fund in 2007 of ?28,350. Selected from over 400 craft entries, Aileen Johnston from Glenealy, Co Wicklow, was awarded the prestigious Award of Excellence for her entry in the contemporary embroidery category. Her magnificent, highly detailed embroidered Book of Hours with text and illustrations features a mix of hand embroidery, beading and machine embroidery. Meanwhile, at the RDS Student Art Awards, the esteemed Taylor Art Award of ?20,000 was split in equal amounts between four highly promising art students. They are Ceri Garfield from Ennis, Co Clare (Limerick School of Art & Design); Sam Keogh from Ashford, Co Wicklow (National College of Art & Design); Clive Moloney from Roscrea, Co Tipperary; and Harriet Tahany from Killargue, Co Leitrim (Sligo Institute of Technology). Sam Keogh and Harriet Tahany submitted work in mixed media on paper, while Ceri Garfield used the collography printmaking technique for her piece and Clive Moloney's installation was made from casting plaster. The RDS New Entrants Prize was awarded to Brian Lofthouse, Castlebar, Co Mayo, for his F-hole Mandolin in the musical instruments section.
 
RIAI Awards

The annual RIAI Awards, now in their nineteenth year, mark the highest achievements in architectural practice within Ireland. Interestingly, of the nine projects selected for awards in 2007, five of them are publicly funded, showing the increasing fine contribution of public buildings to the built landscape. Eight prizes went to projects outside Dublin. The development scheme at Hanover Quay in Dublin, designed by O'Mahony Pike architects, won Best Housing Project. The judging panel praised the way that the building negotiates the scale of the surrounding architecture, which ranges from Georgian to the industrial heritage of Dublin south docks. Other winning projects included: Bon Secours Day Hospital and Chapel, Galway, by Murray O'Laoire/Brian O'Connell Associates (Best Health Building); and The Source Arts Centre and Library, Thurles, County Tipperary, by McCullough Mulvin (Best Public Cultural Building).
 
The Light Fantastic
The Light Fantastic is an exhibition of Irish stained glass art being held at the National Craft Gallery until 30 September. It is an exhibition designed to celebrate Ireland's proud history in the medium, from its origins in the Arts and Crafts and Neo-Celtic movements of the late 19th century, to its continued success among the country's contemporary artists today. Curated by Mary Boydell, President of the Glass Society of Ireland, and Audrey Whitty, Curator of Applied Arts at the National Museum of Ireland, the show will exhibit the works of artists such as Donna Coogan, Nora Duggan, Eva Kelly, Peadar Lamb, Killian Schurmann and Elke Westen.
 
Mirrored Art
Mirrored Art, a new collection from Fine Design, brings the work of graffiti artists to Habitat. Kate Fine has built on the techniques and concepts behind her Barcode Mirrors and Damask Tables to create a product that combines the qualities of mirrored surfaces and street art. Mirrored Art is a small range that features the work of Irish artists, like Aidan Kelly, Morgan, and Will Saint Leger, taken out of its intended context and transformed into a mirrored canvas. Fine enjoys embellishing everyday objects, especially mirrors which are used to create the illusion of space in small contemporary living spaces. In this series she combines the functional aspects of the mirrored surface with the work of graffiti artists. Fine also hopes to develop a commissioning service where customers can personalise their 'Mirrored Art' by having their own portraits on mirrored boxes. In technical terms the process involves digitally transforming images to produce outlines, creating a laser cut stencil which is adhered to the back of the mirror, sandblasting to remove the silver, and then painting the frosted glass where the silver has been removed.
 
Acclaim for Irish Architecture
The RIBA European Awards 2007, which reward the excellent work being done by RIBA members in the European Union outside the UK, reflected a growing respect within Europe for contemporary Irish architecture. Last year's winners included the çras Chill Dara by Henegan Peng and the Poustinia hermitage buildings in County Tipperary by Bates Maher, and this year firmly established Ireland's footing on the international stage. Of the thirteen winning projects, four were Irish. These included: Cherry Orchard primary school, Dublin, by O'Donnell and Tuomey; the Environmental Research Institute for University College Cork by Bucholz McEvoy Architects; the north campus for Cork Institute of Technology by de Blacam and Meagher, designed in association with the Cork architects Boyd Barrett Murphy O'Connor Architects; and the new civic offices for Cork City Council by ABK Architects.

International recognition has also been visited upon the Belfast architectural firm, Hackett & Hall, who have beaten more than a hundred other applicants in a worldwide competition to design the new £16 million Belfast Metropolitan Arts Centre (MAC) in the Cathedral Quarter. The new facility, which is being built to replace the Old Museum Arts Centre, will be completed in the summer of 2011 to include two theatres, a visual arts space, dance studios, rehearsal rooms, and a cafŽ. The inaugural Lisbon Architecture Triennale took place earlier this summer with Ireland as one of the contributing countries. The Triennale established itself as an architectural festival that addresses the issues that urban spaces face today. The Irish submission to the Triennale, 'Line to Surface: Urban Void/Extended City' examined the city of Dublin in its broader context, with exhibitions treating on a range of topics such as the M50, the landfill site at Dunsink and the regeneration of Ballymun. Curated by Peter Cody of Boyd Cody Architects and Peter Carroll of A2 Architects, the eleven contributors were: Boyd Cody Architects/A2 Architects; Ballymun Regeneration Ltd; Dermot Foley Landscape Architects; De Paor Architects; Dublin Docklands Development Authority; FKL Architects; Grafton Architects; McGarry N’ ƒanaigh Architects; McCullough Mulvin Architects; O'Donnell and Tuomey Architects; and UCD Architecture.
 
Bespoke jewellery in Cork
The goldsmith and designer Tuula Harrington, who has worked from her Designworks studio in Cork, since 2004, is relocating to a new workshop in Winthrop Arcade in Cork city centre. The new premises will combine Harrington's working space with a gallery and retail outlet. 'Until now the business has grown mostly through word of mouth, as people enjoy sharing their experience of having a piece of jewellery designed specifically for them. The intention is to make this experience more visible and attainable to the public with the new premises. A large window space will give passers-by a view of jewellery design and production. I also hope that having a visible workbench where the public can see the designer and goldsmith at work will raise interest in and awareness of the craft. There will also be a small seated consultation area, which will be more intimate and welcoming, where customers will get individual attention to discuss their commission. A studio-based business also gives me the opportunity to keep my designs fresh, while frequent contact with the public means I get constant feedback on the product range and services.'
 
Inspired Creations

Ecology, Mythology, Technology will run in the National Craft Gallery, Kilkenny, from 13 October to 28 January. Three architectural practices - Solearth Architects (Ecology), Dominic Stevens (Mythology) and BCDH Architects (Technology) - were asked to come up with a brief that addresses questions at the heart of contemporary Ireland. How can we produce new buildings and products without harming our environment? Can we look to the past and our (Celtic) mythology in a non-nostalgic way and create exciting new objects that are relevant to us today? How do we utilise new technologies to enhance rather than swamp the things that we make? The exhibition is the response to the brief by twenty-three designers and makers. Jeweller Angela O'Kelly gives the ecological angle an elegant twist with sensual bracelets formed by thousands of layers of recycled newspaper; Anne Harrington Rees also uses recycled newspaper in her organically shaped baskets, intimate vessels of redundant information and words. Taking myth as a starting point, several makers have looked back at early Irish chair forms. Eric O'Connor investigated an early famine chair and both Sasha Sykes and Joseph Walsh have revisited the Sligo chair with wit and elegance; one in resin and moss, the other in wood and leather. In terms of technology, the new series of Prism tables from Joseph Walsh is made possible by computer-aided design, as is the origami-like star of Tom O'Rahilly's coffee table. The other exhibitors included: Annabel and Neil McCarthy, Alison Ospina, Yaffe Mays, Glenn Lucas, Patricia Murphy, Mel Bradley, Rachel McKnight, Edward Cook and Liam Flynn.
 
New England Designs
New England Designs, based in Ballsbridge, Dublin, has become the exclusive dealer of Thos Moser Cabinetmakers in Europe. The company originated in 1972 when the former college professor Tom Moser left teaching to start a family business making furniture in Maine, USA. His early designs followed various American traditions including Shaker, Queen Anne, and Pennsylvania Dutch. His work gradually became more sophisticated however, now claiming to combine the discipline of classic Japanese joinery and the sentimentality of the Arts and Crafts movement, and to unite the untutored aesthetics of the American Shaker period of the 1830s and 1840s with the sophisticated and urbane German Bauhaus of the 1920s - all design movements that share a distaste for ornament and ostentation. The company now offers nearly 200 different pieces of handcrafted furniture, and designs and builds a large number of bespoke pieces. The collection includes dining and lounge seating, dining tables, stools, benches, beds, dining and bedroom cases, desks and other office pieces, occasional tables and accessories.
 
African Focus in Farmleigh
'African Vision' is an exhibition of African art with a functional aim being shown at the Farmleigh Gallery this autumn. The pieces exhibited are based on the everyday philosophical and religious traditions of the artists' African communities. The artworks were created originally as both functional and decorative objects and had a multitude of purposes. As well as being used for trading and hairstyling, the pieces were also used for praying and to illustrate a proverb or way of life within the community, incorporating the language of visual art to communicate their culture's teachings and ideas. With artworks ranging from fertility symbols and ceremonial masks to gold weights and representations of deities, 'African Vision' will run from 12 September to 29 October.