Monday 15^th July 2024 7pm at the Laois Arthouse & Library

Join us for this artist’s talk to coincide with the current exhibition Staidéar Neamhbheo | Still Life with exhibiting artist Paddy Critchley and artist Jock Nichol discussing Paddy’s work.  Come see the exhibition and hear more about Paddy’s practice and approach to this genre.

7pm Monday 15th July 2024 at the Laois Arthouse, Stradbally.

All are welcome and the event is free to attend.

#laoisarthouse #laoisarts #laoiscountycouncil #paddycritchley #jocknichol

Staidéar Neamhbheo Still Life

An exhibition of work by Paddy Critchley, and the adult summer arts group, at the Laois Arthouse, Stradbally.

Opening: Friday 5^th July 2024 at 6pm

Exhibition Runs until Friday 26^th July 2024

Laois County Council Arts Office and the Laois Arthouse, Stradbally are delighted to present an exhibition of work by Paddy Critchley with participants from the annual adult summer arts programme 2024.

Following four-days with Paddy, focusing on drawing and painting from life, the group will present an exhibition titled Staidéar Neamhbheo Still Life at the Laois Arthouse, opening on Friday 5^th July 2024 at 6pm.

The Laois Arthouse welcomes all who wish to attend the exhibition opening. The exhibition will be open to the public until Friday 26^th July.

On Monday 15^th July at 7pm, Paddy Critchley will be in conversation with Jock Nichol about his current exhibition, Staidéar Neamhbheo Still Life and the direction he is going. All are welcome to attend, and admission is free. Refreshments will be served. Entrance is through the Laois Arthouse entrance on the Timahoe Road, Stradbally Co Laois. R32KWX3.

Paddy Critchley is an artist from Portlaoise, Co Laois. Since graduating from Limerick School of Art and Design in 2021, he has exhibited at The Hunt Museum and Limerick City Gallery of Art and the Dunamaise Arts Centre. Paddy has work in the Limerick City Gallery of Art and the Hunt Museum’s permanent collection. He was the recipient of the De Veres Art Award for Work of Distinction at the 191st Annual RHA Exhibition for the painting Nature Morte (After Beckett). His practice is a constant interrogation of his environment. His political ideologies towards his environment shape how he sees the world and informs his practice. Paddy is conscious that in an ever increasingly chaotic world, where money and power rules, he wishes to shine a light on the ordinary person and the life he lives and knows. Paddy Critchley aims to show different voices withing the social and economic backgrounds of his peers and their environments, these take the form on intimate portraits and still lives reminiscent of the American artist Alice Neel, who has been a substantial influence on Paddy’s practice. Paddy is also a painter and decorator and interested in the politics of this trade.

Adult Summer Arts Programme

Artist Paddy Critchley facilitated the Annual Adult Summer Arts Programme in 2024, in the beautiful surroundings of the Malthouse, Stradbally, Co. Laois.  The programme entitled Staidéar Neamhbheo Still Life comprised of a four-day course from Tuesday 2^nd to Friday 5^th July 2024 followed by an exhibition of work at the Laois Arthouse Stradbally.

Over the four-days, Paddy shared his work methods and experience to assist and guide the students.  This four-day programme focused on drawing and painting from life. This will primarily be a series of still life workshops in which they draw form still life compositions curated by Paddy, and progress to making acrylic paintings.

For further information see www.laois.ie or contact the Arts Office artsoff@laoiscoco.ie  / 057 8664109.

On Wednesday June 5^th at 7pm, Roger Bennett, the world renowned woodturner who is originally from Knockaroo, Co Laois will conduct a conversation with Alan, about the  exhibition Quercu, at the Laois Arthouse in Stradbally. It will be a wonderful opportunity to connect with the work and to meet people. Refreshments will be served.

Laois County Council Arts Office and the Laois Arthouse, Stradbally are delighted to announce the annual adult summer arts programme 2024.  The artist delivering the programme this year is Paddy Critchley. The programme is entitled Staidéar Neamhbheo Still Life: working from life and takes place in the beautiful surroundings of the Malthouse, Stradbally, Co Laois.

The four-day course runs from Tuesday 2^nd to Friday 5^th July from 10:30am-4:00pm with an exhibition opening at 5pm on Friday 5^th July at 6pm.

Over the four-days, Paddy will share his work methods and experience to assist and guide the students.  This four-day programme focuses on drawing and painting from life. This will primarily be a series of still life workshops in which they draw form still life compositions curated by Paddy, and progress to making acrylic paintings.

The week concludes with an exhibition opening of Paddy’s work and selected work of the participants also entitled Staidéar Neamhbheo Still Life at the Laois Arthouse, Stradbally on Friday evening, 5^th July at 6pm.  All are welcome to attend the exhibition opening. The exhibition will remain open until July 26^th.

Students will need to bring an easel, 4 canvases, two large and two small. Acrylic paints, brushes, and drawing materials. There are several easels and painting boards available on request from the Laois Arthouse.

Packed lunch and drinks also are recommended.

Paddy is an artist from Portlaoise, Co Laois. Since graduating from Limerick School of Art and Design in 2021, he has exhibited at The Hunt Museum and Limerick City Gallery of Art and the Dunamaise Arts Centre. Paddy has work in the Limerick City Gallery of Art and the Hunt Museum’s permanent collection. He was the recipient of the De Veres Art Award for Work of Distinction at the 191st Annual RHA Exhibition for the painting Nature Morte (After Beckett).  His practice is a constant interrogation of his environment. His political ideologies towards his environment shape how he sees the world and informs his practice. Paddy is conscious that in an ever increasingly chaotic world, where money and power rules, he wishes to shine a light on the ordinary person and the life he lives and knows.  Paddy Critchley aims to show different voices withing the social and economic backgrounds of his peers and their environments, these take the form on intimate portraits and still lives reminiscent of the American artist Alice Neel, who has had a big influence on Paddy’s practice. Paddy is also a painter and decorator and interested in the politics of this trade.

There are limited spaces and booking is essential. The course fee €120. Concession of €70 available for students and unemployed. Contact Laois County Council Cash Office – 05786 74308 to pay. Please quote: Masterclasses Paddy Critchley. Cash Office Opening Hours: Monday to Friday 9.30am – 3.30pm and please send the completed booking form to Laois Arts Office.

The booking form and further information can be found on www.laois.ie or by clicking on the link below.  You can contact the Arts Office arts@laoiscoco.ie  / 057 8664109.

Booking Form PC Summer Adult Arts

Greg Hallahan

My artwork is deeply rooted in honouring the architectural legacy of our ancient ancestors, showcasing the timeless power and simplicity that often go unnoticed within man-made structures.

Through my work, I consciously engage in the reintegration and reuse of recyclable materials, breathing new life into their humble origins. By predominantly utilizing recycled double corrugated cardboard, and more recently incorporating plywood, I aim to celebrate the inherent beauty found in the everyday. This choice serves as a testament to the eco-friendly importance of utilizing sustainable mediums in artistic expression. Similar to cardboard, which often goes unnoticed, both the material and the structure possess an undiscovered beauty waiting to be uncovered.

As viewers interact with the textures and forms of my pieces, they embark on a sensory journey that transcends the ordinary. Much like the cardboard boxes that once served as vessels for goods, my art carries the potential for transformation, inviting viewers to reconsider their perception of the world.

In today’s fast-paced world, where the extraordinary often hides within the ordinary, my art offers a moment of reflection. It prompts viewers to reconnect with the simplicity and intricacy of their surroundings, reminding them of the abundance of creativity and beauty concealed beneath the surface of everyday life.

www.greghallahanart.com

greghallahan00@gmail.com

Greg Hallahan artworks Laois Arthouse

Lia Laimbock

Lia Laimbock is a Dutch-born artist living and working in Ireland. A graduate from the Royal Academy of Visual Arts in The Hague The Netherlands in 1988. She has worked independently since. Worked with 4 different galleries in the early nineties for 10 years. Mostly solo exhibitions apart from group exhibitions. 3 Solo exhibitions in the Museum of Figurative Art in Groningen, Bergen op Zoom and the Kim Whanki Museum in Seoul South Korea after winning the Dutch Bienale Figurative Art. Series of 8 portraits of authors in the Museum of Literature in The Hague. Painted life size the inauguration double portraits of HRH King Willem Alexander and HM Queen Maxima.

Before falling in love with an Irish man and moving to Ireland she was a master teacher for the final year students at the Classical Academy in Groningen for 2 years. Exhibited twice at the Annual exhibition of the RHA. Exhibited 7 years at ART source at the RDS. Nation Wide interviewed Lia regarding her life size fibre glass resin racehorse that she painted to benefit the Injured Jockeys Fund and sensational Kids Fund. Permanently displayed in the Heritage Hotel in Killenard. Lia joined Incognito for 5 years to benefit the Jack& Jill Foundation. Apart from painting Lia does occasional ceramics and fabric collages. She prefers to paint highly detailed large scale paintings like Saint Brigid and Conleth at dawn painting commissioned by Kildare County Council now exhibited in the new Library in Naas. She recently donated her Brigid rooks and heron painting to Solas Bhríde near Kildare Town. Her work expresses her love for nature, animals and people in imaginary settings. Lia is delighted to work at The Arthouse in Stradbally and is looking forward to collaborate with the other Artists.

Bernadette Keating

Bernadette Keating is a visual artist with a multidisciplinary practice spanning still photography, video, text, sound, and installation. Working between conceptual and documentary approaches to image-making, she explores notions of space, place, and belonging in the built environment, agricultural landscapes and border territories. Her academic journey includes postgraduate studies in Photography & Media at the Academy of Fine Arts (HGB) Leipzig under the mentorship of Prof. Joachim Brohm, complemented by an MA in Documentary Photography from the University of the Arts London and a BA in European Studies from University of Limerick. Her artist book ‘Of Bounds’, published in 2022 by German publisher Lubok Verlag, intertwines photographic and text-based series, exploring themes of land reform, borders, and the design and construction of space. The book was long-listed by Stiftung Buchkunst (Book Arts Foundation) for Germany’s ‘Most Beautiful Art Book of the Year’ award in 2022. ‘Solo Work’, a black & white photographic series stemming from a residency in Oslo, earned a place in the 2018 biennial European Month of Photography Berlin. Additionally, her photo book ’30 Irish Landscapes’ made it to the shortlist for Amsterdam’s Unseen Photobook Award in 2015. Notably, her work was recently shown in the following group exhibitions such as: ‘In Our Own Image: The Politics of Place’ at Photo Museum Ireland, Dublin (2022), ‘Uneven Ground: Designing Places, Naming History, Naming Places, Designing History’ at the House of Photography Prague, Czech Republic (2020), and ‘Modernism. Iconography. Photography., The Bauhaus and its Consequences, 1919 to 2019’ at the Museum of Contemporary Art Magdeburg, Germany (2019). During ‘Zeitgeist 2024’, a year-long celebration of Irish arts and culture throughout Germany, her ‘Líne’ photo series will feature in ‘Changing States: Ireland in the 21st Century’ at the Haus am Kleistpark municipal gallery in Berlin from June to August. This collaborative exhibition, organised by IKS (German Institute for Art Documentation) & Photo Museum Ireland, is a showcase of Irish artistic talent. Bernadette’s current Arthouse studio residency revolves around the themes of “Time” and “Scale,” prompted by the discovery of an erratic boulder on the family farm in Laois. Beyond its geological significance, this boulder symbolises the passage of time, with marine fossils embedded within dating back 300 million years. Her project encompasses a variety of artistic mediums, including photography, videography, and specialised techniques like ultraviolet photography and photogrammetry. Through this multidimensional exploration, she aims to investigate concepts of form, space, and materiality in novel and playful ways. The boulder serves as the focal point for this exploration, serving as a visual and conceptual anchor for the project’s thematic investigations, and a catalyst for deeper philosophical inquiry. Ultimately, Bernadette endeavours to create visually arresting compositions that juxtapose human and geological time, and blur the boundaries between art and science.

Our Resident Artist – Stephanie Deady

Huge congratulations to our resident Artist in the Arthouse Stradbally Ms. Stephanie Deady. Stephanie was the recipient of the Hennessy Craig Award 2024. It was presented at the Royal Hibernian Academy.

Stephanie Deady graduated with a BA in Fine Art from Limerick School of Art and Design in (2014). Upcoming solo exhibitions include, Art House Laois (2024), Kevin Kavanagh Dublin (2024). Group and solo exhibitions include Hennessy Craig Award RHA (2024), Ballinglen First Biennial (2023), Boyle Arts Festival (2023), Measure for Measure (solo), Kevin Kavanagh Dublin (2022), The Pleasure Ground, Rathfarnham Castle (2022), SILVER, Kevin Kavanagh, Dublin (2019), Hennessy Craig Award, Shortlisted Group Show, RHA Dublin (2019), Make Haste Slowly, Goethe-Institut Irland, Dublin (2018), Island Life, Kevin Kavanagh Dublin (2018), Primed Vision, Solo Exhibition, Kevin Kavanagh, Dublin (2018), An Act of Hospitality can only be Poetic, Highlanes Gallery Drogheda (2018), Atrium Space, ‘Temple Bar Gallery + Studio’s 6th Annual ‘Dublin Art Book Fair’ (2016). Exhibited at Art Rotterdam (2023) and London Art Fair (2020). Recipient of the Hennessy Craig Award (2024), the Claremorris Gallery Award Ballinglen First Biennial (2023), the Fergus Ahearn Award, Boyle (2023), Agility Award The Arts Council of Ireland (2021), Bursary Award The Arts Council (2021). Tony O’Malley Resident administered by the RHA (2017/2018).