Celebrating a return for audiences to the arts in seven towns across Laois, DunamaiseArts Centre is proud to present a major new project entitled re: CENTRING, a combination of free, live events between now and April 2022, led by artists and curators with origins in and strong connections to the county. re: CENTRING, which is funded by the Arts Council Initiative In the Open / Faoin Spéir, takes place in collaboration with Laois County Council Arts Office and Music Generation Laois. The first event will be headlined by singer-songwriter Jack L on Sunday 26 September in Stradbally – to book tickets for the evening concert, see dunamaise.ie and Dunamaise socials. And a range of free outdoor events will take place across the town throughout the day from 12pm – 6pm, with no advance booking requirements, guided by safe distancing outdoors. Members of the community can stroll through Stradbally and enjoy all that they encounter.

The Market Square will be a hive of activity with the Laois Arthouse Collective exhibiting a selection of art works, ceramics and sculptures with a live performance art event also taking place, coordinated by Ballyfin based artist, Kevin Mc Cann. The public can engage with artists to discuss their processes, as they create paintings live on site!

The Bandwagon will visit the Green at Courthouse Square, with an afternoon of live music and workshops, including Laois band Paper Planes and Portlaoise Singer-Songwriter James O’Connor.

From 12 noon entertaining puppet shows for all the family will colour and energise the garden of Laois Arthouse while the Arthouse Gallery will be open throughout the day for visitors to enjoy ‘Moving On’ – an Exhibition of ceramics by Artist Monica O’Meara.  All events will be presented in line with current Government Guidelines and restrictions and capacities will be managed. Please follow instructions from festival stewards to ensure everyone’s health, safety and enjoyment of events on the day.

Laois Arthouse Gallery presents  ‘Moving On’ – An Exhibition of Ceramics from 4pm-8pm  – Artist Monica O’Meara will exhibit a selection of her abstract ceramic works both wall and plinth mounted.  Meet the artist Monica O’ Meara in the Arthouse, Stradbally on Culture Night 2021.  “I feel deeply connected to untamed landscapes prevalent in the Irish uplands and coast – the physical marks, exposed rocks, cracks and folds, contrasting colours and textures that evidence their creation.  My work explores geology and the concept of time, investigating the notion of capturing and accelerating unfathomable time through ceramic processes. Ceramic construction methods and materials echo the brute natural forces intrinsic to the formation of geological strata and their subsequent breakdown and exposure through erosion – crushing, crashing, scorching, rupturing and shattering. My approach of using layers to emphasise on a micro level to convey what is evident in the natural world on a macro level has resonances with the passing of time in the life of humankind. ‘Moving On’ explores our responses to both time and nature in the rapidly changing times we presently find ourselves.”   Join Monica at ‘Moving On’ for informal conversations on the day.