Thursday, January 21, 2016

Unique and wonderful artwork in Scoil Bhride

Those who are planning to visit Scoil Bhride for its official opening on 5 February should set aside a little time to closely examine some artwork in the foyer, writes Brian Byrne.

The work of Offaly-based artist Caroline Conway, the several panels of woodcut art hold a veritable treasure trove of Kilcullen views when examined closely.

"Every time I stop to look, I find something that I didn't see before," says the school's Principal Anne Flanagan.

The artist is a printmaker working primarily with large scale woodcuts, and low-relief carved woodblock pieces. Trained as an architect, she then went on to Edinburgh College of Art where she achieved a BA Hons 1st Class in Printed Textiles and Printmaking.

Caroline has exhibited widely in Ireland, Scotland and London, and her work is included in many private, public and local authority collections.

Before working on the Scoil Bhride panels, she spoke at length with the children of the school, asking them what was important to them in Kilcullen. From those discussions she chose the locations which form the detail of the panels.

They are bright, cheerful, colourful and a quite extraordinary record of many different aspects of the town and its businesses, landscapes, and architecture.