Giving Santa a hand: Art, Craft and Design Fairs across Ireland

With so many talented artists, designers and crafts people across Ireland, it would be a shame not to have a look at their work before you write your letters to Santa. Here’s a list of Art, Design and Craft fairs coming up in November and December.

Let us know if you know of any events we could add to the list:

-Dublin

RDS Art Fair: 4-6^th November

National Crafts and Design Fair, RDS: 30^th Nov – 4th December

Winter Craft Fair, Dalkey Castle and Heritage Centre: 12^th-13^th November

Marlay Craft Fair: 25-27^th November

The Affordable Gift Fair, The Royal Marine Hotel, Dun Laoghaire: 20^th November

-Cork

National Crafts and Design Fair, City Hall Cork city: 24-27^th November

Christmas Craft Fair / Cork Art & Design, The Grain Store, Ballymaloe, Cork: 19^th-20^th November

Art, Craft and Food Fair, Goleen Community Centre, Goleen, West Cork: 4^th December

Annual Craft Fair, Lewis Glucksman Gallery, 4-6^th November

-Galway

Galway Christmas Market, Eyre Square: 25^th Nov – 18^th December

-Kildare

Christmas Craft Fair, Glenroyal Hotel, Maynooth: 11^th December

Christmas Craft Fair, Athy: 10^th December

-Limerick

Christmas Craft Fair, Kilmurry Lodge, Limerick: 11^th December

-Mayo

Craft Fair, Linenhall Arts Centre: 10^th December

Christmas Craft Fair, Ballinrobe Community School, Mayo: 27^th November

-Meath

Charity Craft Fair, Trim Castle:  6^th November

Christmas Craft Fair, Clubhouse Carlanstown: 20^th November

-Wexford

Christmas Food and Craft Fair, Springmount Garden Centre, Ballycanew, Gorey: 3^rd December

The Creative Collection Craft Fair, Gorey Shopping Centre, Gorey: 12^th November and 10^th December

-Wicklow

Christmas at Killruddery, Killruddery House, Bray:  17-20^th November


-Delgany Art Exhibition, 18-20th November

Christmas at The Gaol, Wicklow Town:  2-4^th Dec, 9-11^th Dec and 16-18^th December

Tony O'Connor artwork for this year's IHWT charity Christmas Cards

'Winter's Tail' by equestrian artist Tony O'Connor is the image specially commissioned for this year's Christmas cards in aid of Irish horse charity Irish Horse Welfare Trust (IHWT).

“Personally as an artist, it is fantastic to see my paintings actually ‘make a difference’ to a charity like IHWT.  A Winters Tail, was the ideal choice for a Christmas card to help raise some much needed funds to help  horses in need this winter,” says O'Connor.

"The inspiration for this painting came from Irish winter mornings, when the frost has left its mark on each blade of grass amidst the serenity of the countryside. The warmth of the horse underneath, the only sounds being the hoof beats on crisp earth, the odd nicker or snort from the horse and the caw of crows from the woods.”

Cards can be ordered online at http://www.ihwt.ie/ and they cost €10.00 for 2 packs excluding postage.

The Irish Horse Welfare Trust rescuing, re-habilitating and finding new homes for neglected horses in Ireland. The charity also runs educational programmes across Ireland, related to equine health and welfare; as well as running re-training programmes for retired race horses..

One Thousand: Paintings, Drawings and Sculptures by Tom Campbell in Cork

Cork based artist Tom Campbell is opening his exhibition One Thousand (1000) at the Tactic Gallery space (former Fás building on Sullivans Quay) in Cork, on Friday 21st October.

The pieces drawn from the artist’s personal collection of paintings, sculptures and sketchbooks and runs until 29^th October. The themes of Campbell’s colourful work are often faces of clowns, animals and fantasy creatures, with much of the work inspired by the circus.

The artist is originally from Dumfries in Scotland and has been based in Cork since 2001, where he says he ‘has found his inspiration and created some of his most exciting work’. Over recent years he has exhibited in Ireland and abroad, including Italy, France , Catalonia and UK.  In his most recent undertaking ‘The dog project’, he directed a group of over 100 volunteers to create 120 papier-maché dogs which were exhibited at the Camden Palace and Kinsale Art Festival.

For further information: www.tomcampbellart.com  087 6102142 or by email 

When:  21 - 29 October 2011

Opening times: 11am-6pm

Where: Sample studios, Tactic gallery, Former FAS building, Sullivans Quay, Cork

Original Chaos - Science-inspired art exhibition by Joey Hehir

Science-inspired art exhibition Original Chaos, by Kilkenny artist Joey Hehir comes to an end this Saturday 15th October.

Hehir's work is a visualization of shapes found in nature, using mathematical procedures to mirror the beauty of nature.

"The universe we live in exists in a balance of complicated relationships governed by equations. It is Mathematics that harbours the secrets to these equations. Chaos describes how everything is fundamentally in disorder," he explains. "Equations iterated over time tend to become unpredictable. An example of this is found in weather prediction where complex equation systems are used to foresee weather patterns. These predictions are seldom completely accurate."

According to Hehir, equations can be graphed in order to present outcomes and, with repeated iterations, complex patterns are formed.

"Some patterns seem to reoccur regularly," he says. "Spirals describe vast galaxies and the pattern of a snail's shell. Pentograms are seen in the form of star fish and in relation to planetary orbits. These patterns have also found their way into human art and conscienceness. Such as the ancient spirals on the entrance rock at Newgrange. The Pentogram has become, for some, a religious symbol and, for Morocco, a symbol of nationhood."

Where: Old Callan Co-Op, Green St, Callan, Co. Kilkenny
When: 1-15th October 2011 
Opening Times: Mon-Sat 12-17pm

Rathwood hosts first exhibition by Rathgall Painters Guild

Over 80 oil paintings will be on display from 1^st – 7^th October

Rathwood is hosting a week-long exhibition of more than 80 oil paintings by the members of the Rathgall Painters Guild. The exhibition opens on Saturday 1^st October.

The artists group takes its name after the Rathgall hill fort that has been home to and inspired craftsmen and artisans since the Bronze-age. The Rathgall Painter’s Guild aims to continue this tradition in the visual arts. 

The group originally came together under classes funded by the VEC and the 12 members are mentored by  Jacinta Crowley-Long, an internationally known painter who specializes in rural landscapes and equine and canine portraits.  

“Many of the artists had been painting for many years in the Rathgall area, before they approached me some time ago to attend master classes in oil painting,” says Jacinta. “This will be our first full year working together and the group has been growing creatively since we first started meeting. Each artist has really developed his/her own style over the years and we are all extremely pleased to present our first exhibition as a collective.”

The painters meet up on a weekly basis for tuition and group discussions on the visual arts in general at the Ballyconnell Hall. “The styles and topics of the paintings on display will be varied, from still life to country scenes and landscapes, many of those the public might recognize from the beautiful countryside around Tullow,” she adds.