2022-2023

2022-2023

Castledockrell NS, Enniscorthy) / St. Edan’s NS, Ferns, Enniscorthy / Scoil Mhuire, Rosslare / St. Patrick’s NS Crossabeg

In 2013, the Living Arts Project was established as an artist-in-residence scheme in primary schools, supporting the existing partnership between the Arts Department of Wexford County Council and Wexford Arts Centre. The aim of this project is to provide children with an understanding and appreciation of contemporary visual art. The Living Arts Project exhibition represents a selection of work produced by the participating primary schools and offers pupils a chance to see their work presented in a professional gallery.

The following artists and schools were selected for this year’s programme: Deirdre Meehan-Buttimer and Fernanda Ferrari with Castledockrell NS (Enniscorthy), Kate Murphy and Brid Colloton with St. Edan’s NS (Ferns, Enniscorthy), Jeni Roddy and Lynn Haughton with Scoil Mhuire (Rosslare), and Sonya Weston and Deirdre Travers with St. Patrick’s NS (Crossabeg).

Pupils of Castledockrell NS, Enniscorthy.
Artist Sonya Weston with a pupil of St. Patrick’s NS in Crossabeg.
Assistant Artist Deirdre Buggy with a pupil of St. Patrick’s NS in Crossabeg.
Assistant Artist Deirdre Buggy with a pupil of St. Patrick’s NS in Crossabeg.
A pupil of St. Patrick’s NS in Crossabeg.
Pupils of St. Patrick’s NS in Crossabeg.
Work of a pupil of St. Patrick’s NS in Crossabeg.
A pupil of St. Patrick’s NS in Crossabeg.
Pupils of St. Patrick’s NS in Crossabeg.
Artist Sonya Weston with a pupil of St. Patrick’s NS in Crossabeg.
Pupils of St. Patrick’s NS in Crossabeg.
Work of pupils of St. Patrick’s NS in Crossabeg.
Assistant Artist Deirdre Buggy with pupils of St. Patrick’s NS in Crossabeg.
Pupils of St. Edan’s NS in Ferns.
Pupils of St. Edan’s NS in Ferns.
Artist Kate Murphy with pupils of St. Edan’s NS in Ferns.
Artist Kate Murphy with pupils of St. Edan’s NS in Ferns.
Artist Kate Murphy with pupils of St. Edan’s NS in Ferns.
Pupils of St. Edan’s NS in Ferns.
Artist Kate Murphy in St. Edan’s NS in Ferns.
Pupils of St. Edan’s NS in Ferns.
Artist Kate Murphy with pupils of St. Edan’s NS in Ferns.
A pupil of St. Edan’s NS in Ferns.
Artist Kate Murphy with pupils of St. Edan’s NS in Ferns.
Work of pupils of St. Edan’s NS in Ferns.
Artist Kate Murphy with pupils of St. Edan’s NS in Ferns.
Pupils of Scoil Mhuire, Rosslare.
Pupils of Scoil Mhuire, Rosslare.
Pupils of Scoil Mhuire, Rosslare.
Pupils of Scoil Mhuire, Rosslare.
Artist Jeni Roddy with pupils of Scoil Mhuire, Rosslare.
Pupils of Scoil Mhuire, Rosslare.
Pupils of Scoil Mhuire, Rosslare.
Assistant Artist Fernanda Ferrari with pupils of Castledockrell NS, Enniscorthy.
Artist Deirdre Meehan-Buttimer with pupils of Castledockrell NS, Enniscorthy.
Assistant Artist Fernanda Ferrari with pupils of Castledockrell NS, Enniscorthy.

Through the themes of identity, climate change and sustainability, and the environment, the activities focused on promoting artistic and interpersonal skills enabling pupils to recognize the potential of art to be used as a tool for communication and learning. 

A mentorship programme ran alongside each residency which helped to ensure the effectiveness of the project while also providing a positive critique for the resident artist. In addition, it served to refine methods of engaging with the children throughout each residency. The mentors involved in the 2022-23 programme: were David Begley, Michael Fortune, Joanna Kidney, Anthony Lyttle, Eamonn Maxwell, Ann Mulrooney, Monika Sapielak, and Alannah Robbins. 

Work of pupils of St. Aidan’s National School, Enniscorthy.

Deirdre Meehan-Buttimer

Lead Artist

Deirdre graduated from Wexford Campus School of Art & Design, SETU in 2016 and successfully transitioned to build a strong participatory arts practice. She has been involved as a lead artist on the Living Arts Project in 2019-20, 2020-21, and 2021-22.  She was also awarded Creative Communities Awards by Wexford County Council to undertake projects with Wexford Women’s Refuge exploring Coercive Control, and Intellectual Disability Isolation with adult service users of Windmill Therapeutic. 

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Fernanda Ferrari

Assistant Artist

Fernanda Ferrari is an award-winning visual storyteller, performer, and workshop facilitator. Her passion is to create experiences that awaken the inner child, exploring creativity as a tool of transformation. She has developed projects for young people with the support of the Arts Council and the South Dublin County Council. Currently, she is working on an immersive installation for children and their families mixing puppetry and cutting-edge technology. This project is supported through the Arts Council’s YPCE Bursary Award

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Kate Murphy

Lead Artist

Originally from Dublin, Kate now lives and works in Wexford.  She holds BA in Fine Art from the Nationa College of Art & Design, Dublin. She has had solo exhibitions with the Stone Gallery and the Talbot Gallery in Dublin as well as at Wexford Arts Centre. In 2019, Kate took part in the RHA Annual exhibition and Cairde Visual at The Model Gallery, Sligo.  She exhibited at BEEP Painting Biennial in Wales in 2020 and her work was included in Wide Open Spaces (2022), a selection of work from Wexford County Council’s Art Collection, curated by Eamonn Maxwell.  Kate is looking forward to a 2-person show at Claremorris Gallery, Mayo this June.

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Brid Colloton

Assistant Artist

Bríd is a Wexford-born artist whose main area of interest is the medium of printmaking. After working for many years in the world of business and career guidance, Brid returned to Gorey School of Art and Wexford Campus School of Art & Design, SETU) to pursue her love of all things creative and reflective. Bríd works with many forms of printmaking such as dry point etching, copper etching, monotype, collagraph, and carborundum.  She is a regular in Graphic Print Studio in Dublin and set up her own printmaking studio at home to include the more environmentally friendly process of aluminium etching.

Jeni Roddy

Lead Artist

Jeni has worked for over twenty years as an interdisciplinary artist and designer producing live content through the mediums of theatre, film, and performance art. She works with textiles, nature, and the body and looks at how these intersect. She is concerned with how we can live responsibly and responsively in our localities and globally, being mindful and creative in our daily lives. She was Head of Costume for the  Wexford Festival Opera for four seasons and has designed many award-winning productions. In 2020, she completed a three-year project for Galway 2020 European Capital of Culture as a co-curator of Weatherproof Me, co-designer of Drowned Galway, and lead artist of Umbrella Orphanage.

Lynn Haughton

Assistant Artist

Lynn is a textile waste artist and re-designer specializing in turning waste into worth. Her work ranges from sculptures to product design commissions and collaborative projects. Lynn’s creative vision to find new purpose and value in otherwise redundant materials has led her to work with everything from wetsuits to wind turbine tarps!  In 2012, she founded The Upcycle Movement – a multi-award-winning Irish Design Studio and online platform for upcycled design. She also founded ReSource, a platform connecting waste streams with designers for repurposing. Most recently, Lynn was selected to take part in the Circular by Design Programme run by the National College of Arts & Design, Design & Craft Council Ireland, and Creative Futures Academy.

Sonya Weston

Lead Artist

Deirdre Travers

Assistant Artist

Based in Wexford, both artists are graduates of IT Carlow: Wexford Campus School of Art and Design.  Sonya’s specialist areas of research are in social inclusion, socially engaged art practices and other creative projects that empower communities. Her multi- disciplinary practice includes photography, film, print, sculpture and installation. Deirdre is a multidisciplinary artist whose work involves elements of performance, sculpture, video & photography. Deirdre’s work takes a critical view of social, political and cultural issues.  The artists have worked with widely diverse sections of ages and abilities in the local community.  Community engagement has played an important role in their practice. Sonya and Deirdre believe that creativity gives form to imagination and freedom of expression, and that everybody has the ability and talent to express themselves when given the circumstances to do so.

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