Seed to Flower is my contribution to Creatives for Ukraine, an open platform for creatives from around the world showing solidarity with the people of Ukraine.
UNICEF is working to scale up life-saving support for children and their families in Ukraine.
My exhibition Lines and Layers opened at St John’s Theatre & Arts Centre in Listowel, Co. Kerry last Saturday. I started this body of work in Cill Rialaig Artist Retreat, Co. Kerry in early 2020 and continued working on it over the lockdowns. These acrylic on canvas paintings are variations on simple patterns, made one brushstroke at the time and layered, to create new and unexpected compositions and shades of colour. Opening hours: Mon-Fri 10:00-17:30
Today is the last day of Traveller Pride Week 2021. On Tuesday Hannah McCormick and I facilitated papercutting workshops in after school clubs in O’Loughlin Court and Millennium Court in Kilkenny. I designed an A3 poster based on the work made by the children and on Friday they all received a printed copy.
After months of planning, it was such a pleasure to spend last week in the handball alley in Listowel, Co. Kerry. I mentored local artists Eimear O’Connor, Erin Halpin and Michelle Quinn in working on a mural. The designs are based on small scale papercuts that were enlarged to create a colourful work of public art inspired by Junior Griffin’s poem “Memories of the Ball Alley in Listowel” and the people, sporting life and cultural traditions of Listowel and North Kerry. I am looking forward to the launch of the mural and to showing some of my own recent paintings in St. John’s Theatre and Arts Centre on Saturday. Big thanks to Aideen Wylde, curator in residence Maire Logue of St. John’s Theatre and Arts Centre and to Listowel Tidy Towns.
Kilkenny Catwalk is a trail of 21 sculptures painted by local artists. The 5ft fibreglass resin model is based on Pangur Bán, a character from Cartoon Saloon’s first feature animation ‘The Secret of Kells’. The project is a partnership between Kilkenny Civic Trust and Kilkenny County Council. The trail will be launched on 10 October 2021 and remain in place until Easter 2022. The trail is designed to immerse people in Kilkenny’s rich heritage while at the same time supporting the Keep Well Campaign. At the conclusion of the project, all artwork will be auctioned to raise funds for the St Mary’s Almshouses refurbishment project.
I painted the Age Friendly Cat following a series of online workshops promoted by the Older Peoples Council. Through the medium of papercutting, participants explored positive and negative space, colour, pattern and all things Kilkenny. The rich collection of papercuts that developed over a couple of months, became an integral part of the cat design. Early on, one of the workshop participants proposed that the Age Friendly Cat should be a celebration of creativity in older age. Big thanks to the workshop participants: Eimear Burke, Mary Colclough, Bryan Culley, Janice Culley, Joan Fogarty and Mari O’Shea.
I feel very honoured to have had a large sculptural papercut in ‘Conjuring Form’, the Design and Crafts Council Ireland Portfolio Critical Selection 2021-2022 exhibition in Doneraile Court, Co. Cork. It was curated by Alice Stori Liechtenstein.
I am delighted to have a painting in the Scoop Art Auction 2021. Bidding and live broadcast via the invaluable.com platform and streamed from the Copperhouse Gallery in Dublin on 23, 24, 25 and 26 April.
SCOOP believes in supporting and educating the next generation, especially displaced children and young adults abroad and in Ireland who are suffering through no fault of their own.
This year’s Art Auction is raising funds to support the delivery of SCOOP Ed to young Internally Displaced People (IDP’s) living in camps in Iraqi Kurdistan and refugees living in Direct Provision in Ireland.
Culture Night Kilkenny
Friday 18 September is Culture Night. I worked with the National Design & Craft Gallery in Kilkenny to develop self directed activities in the castlepark and a crafthunt in the rosegarden. I will also run a short online papercutting workshop at 17:00. Check the NDCG website to see their full Culture Night programme and to book your places.
IdN Magazine Typeface Deisgn Issue v26n3
I feel very honoured to be featured in the Typeface Design Issue of IdN, the International Magazine for Image-Makers and Graphic Designers, alongside beautiful work by 60 designers and studios from around the world. The two-page spread includes ‘The Pattern Exchange’, which I developed for Workhouse Union in 2015, and four other fonts.
‘Rise’ and ‘Set’, MacDonagh Junction, Connected, Kilkenny
I am delighted to be part of Connected, the Kilkenny Sculpture Trail curated by the National Design & Craft Gallery. Rise and Set can be seen in the Workhouse Square of the MacDonagh Junction Shopping Centre, 30 July- 20 October. Check out the NDCG website for a map of the trail and discover some beautiful sculptural works by 27 artists and 3 community projects in 21 locations. In the windows of the Hibernian Hotel are four papercuts I made with two groups of women from Open Circle in 2017.
Paul Bokslag 