Drawing inspiration from the humble currach

Lifestyle  –  The thriving arts centre on Aran’s smallest island wanted to mark its coming of age with something different – and, as JUDY MURPHY writes, what better starting point than the canvas of the currach that has been synonymous with Inis Oírr through the ages?

The beautiful stained-glass windows created by artist Harry Clarke in his renowned Dublin studio in the early 20th century can be seen in churches up and down the country, adding extraordinary light and beauty in buildings from St Michael’s Church in Ballinasloe to the Honan Chapel in University College, Cork.

And it was an image of St Gobnait, which Clarke created for the Honan Chapel in 1916 that inspired Galway artist, Kathleen Furey, when she was invited to participate in a unique project celebrating the 21th anniversary of Áras Éanna, the arts centre on Inis Oírr, the smallest of the Aran Islands.

Twenty-one artists from across Ireland were each asked to create a piece of art, using a half-sized currach (six feet) as their canvas. These currachs are made of metal and covered in canvas and while the idea for this show was born out of necessity due to the uncertainty around Covid-19, the results are amazing.

The artistic director of Áras Éanna, Dara McGee, had been trying to organise a group exhibition to celebrate the Centre’s 21st anniversary, that would feature artists who had shown there through the years. But an indoor exhibition of that scale is problematic at present.  That has now been deferred until next year, but Dara decided to run a show this year when he had a brainwave about currachs. He realised that the fishing boats, which are synonymous with the island and which have inspired artists for years, are covered in canvas.

“And canvas is one of the materials that artists paint on,” he says. “I thought it would be amazing to make these currachs, cover them in canvas and then distribute them to the 21 participants.

That’s what happened, with Eugene Finnegan making 21 metal structures and Tom Meskell covering them in canvas, ready for painting.

The project was jointly co-ordinated by Dara and artist Dolores Lynne and features well-known and upcoming painters, with established names including John Behan and Mick O’Dea among them.

Kathleen Furey, who was born in Galway City and has lived in Oughterard for many years now, is one of Galway’s best-known artists. She studied art in Limerick Art College and was a founder member of the Artspace Collective in Galway City in the 1980s, which provided studio spaces for individual artists, all under the one roof, as well as a support network. It’s still going today and while she’s no longer at the coalface, Kathleen remains on the Artspace board.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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