Tag Archives: Rachel Macmanus

THE artist behind a striking new mural in Ennis created in reaction to the ongoing crisis in Palestine has said she wants the artwork to be a symbol of hope. Rachel Macmanus, who has painted a number of murals throughout the town as part of the ‘Negative Space Art Collective’, recently unveiled her latest large scale work at Moran’s Carpark. The imagery for the new mural was created using a Unicef photograph of Palestinian children for reference with Rachel surrounding them with symbolic images of keys and doves. The painting was created by Rachel on behalf of People Of Clare Against Genocide. Rachel said, “It was my honour to paint this mural. The relentless horror and destruction we see daily and have seen for months and months now is hard to process and the feelings of helplessness and anger make us all feel powerless and despairing. Like many people I felt helpless and was becoming desensitised to the relentless awful …

AN Ennis duo’s new artistic endeavour has been bringing sparks of colour and creativity to electrical boxes in locations throughout the county capital. Artists Rachel Macmanus and Robert Downey are the pair behind this project, busily brightening up the boxes dotted throughout Ennis with different works of art. The artists have joined forces to create the Negative Space Collective, a new platform to develop contemporary art and further strengthen visual arts culture and opportunities in the west of Ireland. The electrical box project involves a series of urban art pieces which have been created with the support of Clare Arts Office, under the PRISM Urban Art scheme. And, they both hope this project will be just the start of a movement encouraging artists and communities to come together to create art for everyone. The striking works on the electrical boxes include, among others, depictions of teenagers at Club Bridge, a garda near Ennis Garda Station, a contemporary take on the …

RAIN gives us rainbows is the positive message of a brand new colourful addition to St Anne’s School in Ennis. The school recently unveiled a new mural created by its Oak, Rowan and Willow classes along with local artist Rachel Macmanus. The project was facilitated by the Clare Artists in School Scheme 2021/2022. Principal of St Anne’s Rose-Marie Flanagan explains that before designing the mural Rachel visited them and spent time with the three classes to discuss ideas. “We discussed together what should be included in the design and why. The pupils chose to highlight the nature they see in and around their school, such as birds and animals, and we also discussed the weather we get here in Ennis, a lot of rain! But rain gives us rainbows, which became a central theme for the mural.  “We also focused on the geography of St Anne’s School, which is situated in the centre of Ennis town, and the activities and sports which happen in the school. As we …