Arts & Culture

AN EVOCATIVE exhibition inspired by the holy wells of the Burren runs in North Clare until Sunday August 22. Entitled ‘From the Well’, it is an immersive exhibition by composer Fiona Linnane and photographer Claire O’Rorke who have drawn on local stories sourced from the Cnuasach Bhéaloideas Éireann (The National Folklore Collection) and their own experiences “chasing wells across the Burren hills armed with a microphone and a camera”. The show, in the atmospheric Newtown Castle at the Burren College of Art, also includes a specially produced sound walk exploring three water points in Ballyvaughan. These can be heard online on Fiona Linnane’s SoundCloud account at any time up to Sunday as part of Heritage Week. Central to the exhibition are three short films, entitled ‘holywells’, ‘I bought a hydrophone’, and ‘Some woman’. Visitors will also be invited to share their own stories about the magical wells of the Burren, with the sage advice of never letting the truth get …

THE Doolin Folk Festival, which had been due to take place on September 18-19, has been cancelled for the second year in a row, writes Owen Ryan. Donal Minihane of Hotel Doolin said that it was too risky not to make the call now. “It’s a big investment and it’s too much of a risk to be holding out and holding out. There’s a roadmap coming at the end of August from the Department, but we don’t know what’s in it. There’s too much risk involved. “To be fair to the ticket holders, the artists, the crews and everyone involved, we had to let them know.” He said it would have been very positive for Doolin and its surrounds given the number of tickets sold each year. “It’s a huge amount of bed nights for the area. There would have been 1,200 tickets and it sells out every year. All of those people have to sleep somewhere, eat somewhere and …

AS Ennistymon prepares to take part in the nationwide Poetry Town initiative next month, its new Poet Laureate was revealed today. Poetry Ireland, in conjunction with Clare County Council Arts Office, has appointed Grace Wells as the Poet Laureate for the town. An award-winning eco-poet, author, re-wilder, and yoga teacher, Grace says she was looking forward to celebrating the town’s “dynamic sense of place”. She added: “I love living in Ennistymon and am so proud to be invited to be the town’s Laureate. As an eco-poet navigating the griefs of environmental collapse, it’s so helpful to belong to a community where people are genuinely working to halt Ireland’s biodiversity loss, and actively creating initiatives to help the country become carbon-neutral. “Poetry can support these transitions. Ennistymon already has rich literary roots, it’s both the birthplace of Brian Merriman, and the home of Salmon Press, so I’m hoping to fuse some of these creative energies together, and really celebrate the town’s …

DESIGNER Laura Vaughan is the latest talented craftsperson to join the high profile ‘Made Local’ campaign. This is the second year of the prestigious initiative from the Design and Crafts Council of Ireland and Laura, who has a degree in interior architecture, was selected for her creative curation of the work of other Irish designers and makers, as well as her own range of products Laura’s Design Studio and Gift Shop is a working studio located on Upper O’Connell Street in Ennis. As well as showcasing the work of other designers, Laura offers her own range of digitally printed lampshade, matching cushions, napkins, tea towels and aprons. Combining her background in interiors and textiles, Laura launched her own distinctive homeware range at Showcase 2016, and her patterns and products are constantly evolving and growing. Laura’s collection is designed and made and printed in Ireland and as well ask making her own shades, Laura offers a lampshade restoration and making service …

A FORMER Ennis resident is making a big impression on the Tattoo Art Convention circuit after setting up his own business in Pretoria, South Africa. Siegfried Avenstrup, better known as Ziggy, originally came to Ennis as a young adult and retuned to South Africa in 2014 after studying at the Community Training Centre at the Clare Youth Service. His parents Siegfried and Nastaja live in Sixmilebridge. Having developed and honed his artistic skills at CYS, Ziggy went to further specialist training in tattoo artistry, “I was originally taught by my grandfather and father and was later inspired by the art teacher at the CYS Community Training Centre. I loved the passion he had for art and our discussions about tattoo art opened my mind to the opportunities.  I have grown as an artist since then by working hard and developing my skill level.” Ziggy now runs his own successful tattoo studio in the Doornpoort area of Pretoria and is known for …

RUAN’S Sharon Shannon is set to feature on a new travel and music television series showcasing Ireland’s hidden gems including a visit to County Clare, writes Conor Clohessy. Fáilte Ireland and TG4 have joined forces with the renowned musician on the programme ‘Heartlands’. The four-week series, commencing on Wednesday, August 11 at 8.30pm, features Sharon and her niece Caoilinn Ní Dhonnabháin showcasing the Shannon River region across Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands.  The pair will slowly cruise the River Shannon discovering the country while catching up with a host of musical friends, such as Liam O’Maonlaoi (Hothouse Flowers), Steve Wickham (The Waterboys), Eleanor Shanley, Nathan Carter, The Henshaws, Seamus Begley, Mundy, Gerry ‘Banjo’ O’Connor and Susan O’Neill.  The show will feature Clare and Tipperary on its finale on Wednesday, September 1 having travelled all the way along the river from Cavan. She will pay a visit to Derg Isle and Holy Island, meet and play with Gerry Banjo O’Connor at Garrykennedy, Tipperary, check out Beal Boru with Aindrias …

CNOC na Gaoithe in Tulla was lauded by the Minister Heather Humphreys as an outstanding example of how local communities can harness support to bring old buildings back into use. The Minister for Rural and Community Development stopped off in East Clare during her whistle-stop tour of the county last Thursday (July 29). As part of the national ‘Our Rural Future Roadshow’, the minister saw a range of projects which are being supported by funding from her department. At the Cnoc na Gaoithe centre, where Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann are redeveloping the old convent and primary school building into a cultural hub, Minister Humphreys was treated to a tour of the work to-date as well as a flavour of the rich musical traditional of the area. “What I’ve seen here is absolutely fantastic,” Minister Humphreys told The Champion. “What strikes me most is community. Community, working with local authority, and realising their ambitions, identifying what they want to do in their …

FROM Camden Town to Carnegie Hall and from the Fleadhanna ‘down in Ennis’ to the Body and Soul stage at Electric Picnic, the Tulla Céilí Band has captivated audiences of all kinds for the last three-quarters of a century. Over the course of its illustrious history, the band has brought the tunes of East Clare to prominence in Ireland’s musical repertoire. It has also fostered some of the country’s finest traditional players, including West Clare legends like Willie Clancy and JC Talty. At one point, it even counted a TD as a member, in the person of the long-serving Fianna Fáil representative, Feakle’s Dr Bill Loughnane. The story of the Tulla Céilí Band is closely woven into the history of modern Ireland. It was formed in March 1946, in the lean times after ‘The Emergency’, when the bicycle was the dominant mode of transport and social life didn’t stretch far beyond parish boundaries. Chris Keane, in his book on the …