Launch of Book of Kildare tomorrow
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| Josephine Hardiman at work in her Punchestown studio. Pic Tony Murray. |
The culmination of a 7-year project by Kildare artist and calligrapher Josephine Hardiman will take place tomorrow, Sunday 28 January, with the launch of her Book of Kildare, writes Brian Byrne.
The event in Kildare Town Library at 2.30pm will be marked by a presentation of a copy of the book to local St Brigid's Primary School. Thanks to support from Kildare County Council, a copy will also be given to every primary school in the county.
Described by author and historian Mario Corrigan as “breath-taking in scope, artistic endeavour, and originality”, the book was inspired by the belief that there was an original Book of Kildare, now lost, of calligraphy, paintings, drawings, and illuminations, written and created by scribes and monks between the 6th and 9th centuries. Josephine Hardiman set out in 2016 to produce a new book in the original Celtic Insular style, hand illustrated with illuminations. It includes sections on Ancient Kildare, Brigid of Kildare and Kildare Heritage. Over the seven years of its preparation, pages have been exhibited at various festivals and other events. Prints of some of the pages have been presented to President Michael D Higgins and An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar.
The artist and her work were featured on RTÉ’s 2023 documentary Finding Brigid, hosted by Siobhán McSweeney. Poet Laura Murphy will officially launch the book tomorrow, and Kildare singer-songwriter Sive O’Sullivan will perform songs from ‘In Cloak & Womb, a song cycle tracing the echoes of Brigid’.
The Book of Kildare will be available to purchase from Seanchaí Books, Kildare Town Heritage Centre, Naas Parish Centre and Shop, and from the author.
More information may be found at josephinehardiman.ie.
