Each day in St Patricks we are doing a mini project, the outcome of each day hopefully will be joined together and hung in the hall. The last day we did stained glass effect for the windows using the stuff you cover books with and coloured celephane. The hardest part was stopping certain people ( they know who they are!) from ‘fixing’ the work!
It is difficult for people not to ‘fix’ childrens’ work but it is not good to do this.
I have just started a new project through the Butler gallery Artist in School Residency. i worked in St Pats for a number of years after that last residency I did there, in the good old days when the country had money. I loved the work and learnt an awful lot that has informed my work practice immensely.
It will be fun going back as I think my approach may be slightly different, not a huge amount. I am liaising with two very good teachers, who are very flexible.
Next day we will be making plastic panels to put between the ones here and they will all ‘hopefully’ hang together, but flexibility is the name of the game.
Busy busy busy
Ferrybank girls doing some fun felting starting their 3d pieces, hand warmers.
A bag from a rice bag with some handpainted cotton and a few little felt stitched flowers.
Between college, work and Trying to keep family going it is kinda hectic!!
So the work is starting to get together and these are for the front of the books if they work but we still have batik and felting to go as well as the large screen images. It will all be lovely in the end.
I have been sick as dog all week but have to carry on. No work no pay!!
Life on this island is getting scarier every day but what can we do but carry on and make the best of it.
On that note I woke up Tuesday morning, the first day of the ploughing match and thought ‘sure it is only down the road and Aoife will cost nothing’. So off we set, it was a bit drizzly but sure we are Irish!
We got there nice and early and had a lovely few hours poking our noses into all kinds of tents, entering competitions for Ipads galore!!
We went a few political tents where I wanted to terrorise the terrorists but alas Aoife would not let me loose on them, she is so easily embarrassed!!
Then we got so cold that even the free soup and teas did not works so we decided to leave. This was only 12.30 and i had trouble negotiating the ploughed field so we left by the yard.
Wednesday I had my now two lovely groups doing screen printing on fabric. We were preparing some screens and starting on our visual journals and designing for the screens.
Friday I went to the market in Borris as my time table in College has been changed….this seems quite common, so i got to spend the morning with Rachel O’Hara, Julie Murphy and more. Lovely to see them all, missed Nicola Brown and Emma Jane Champley 
Today Saturday I am what I call ‘pinning down the final/ish stages of my first assignment for college. I will finalise it and print it on Tuesday. I am sure the rest of them ran theirs off in no time. It has taken me ages to work it all out.
It is good to be the learner as it gives you perspective on what the other view feels like!
Here are some samples of textiles that I am working on
Here is some of the work we did in ferrybank today a taster for both levels of the printing that we will do next week. I think it should be another great year, two groups one continuing from last year going up a level and a new group, if they are half as good as last years they will be great, I only met 3 of them today but they seem very enthusiastic and willing to be challenged!
So much organising to do and I intend to be very organised this year. I will have to be. I have a full day each week in Ferrybank and am in the process of stocking up with equipment and materials for the Fetac modules we plan to run.
I love spending other peoples money!
I have also put more work on Etsy
http://www.etsy.com/shop/maireadholohan
Cut the grass and finish some Textile pieces I am working on.
Here are some pieces that I have been playing on and some I am reworking
Must get on with the Cottage commission as well.
What a busy couple of weeks I have had, between the National Country Fair, Arts Week in Thomastown and a couple of days at the Dublin Horse show.
Here are some shots from the Arts Festival in Thomastown. It was very quiet for me so if I do it next year I will try to find a more accessible venue. I lost two of my rooms so it was a bit crowded…
I am exhausted. After the excitement if the fair Springhill Equestrian centre had a little show that we brought the two ponies to, for Aoife to ride and I was really brave and went in the adult, god I am such a chicken nowadays!
A day of rest and then onto organising the work for Thomastown for Kilkenny Arts Week.
I will be showing upstairs over Ray Challoners Physiotherapist in Low S., Thomastown, Co Kilkenny.
It will be nice to hang the work in a decent space not just on tables and hanging from a dodgy tent!!
These are some of my favourite pieces…….Not too big 50x50cm unframed so about 100c100cm framed.
It took a lot of works and planning to do the National Country Fair last weekend. The fair was a bit of a wash out on Saturday, My stand had a spring under it that filled up every it rains!!!! They had to put a new roof on for us also as there were some leaks on the work!!
Luckily Eileen form Carlow Tourism gave my name to Nationwide when they were looking for people to interview.
They interviewed Emma Jane Champley, Melanie from the Weekly Borris Food and Craft Market and me.
Free advertising is always welcome. Let us hope they use lots of us now..
Here are some shots on day one .
