CULTURE NIGHT, KILKENNY
FRIDAY 24 SEPTEMBER, 2010

BUTLER GALLERY ACTIVITY, 18.00 – 22.00PM

The Butler Gallery will open late for Kilkenny’s Culture Night, transforming itself into a speakeasy of sorts for one night only. Activity includes constructions and constellations of music and word from traditional Irish musicians and well known poets who get together for an impromptu session, in the surrounds of the current exhibition at the Gallery – Tony O’Malley, ‘Constructions’. The event has been programmed in collaboration with Jane O’Malley and author, critic and poet, Brian Lynch. Other voices from the Gallery’s education programme will be there on the night in the form of an exhibition of the work of children attending the Solas family programme in the Kitchen Corridor and from ‘Red Square Kibosh’, a group of young critics who will lead tours of the O’Malley exhibition throughout the evening and who may be instrumental in getting a ceili beag going in the Gallery. Read on to find out more!

Exhibition
Tony O’Malley: Constructions, 18.00 – 22.00pm

Embark on a late night viewing of the Butler Gallery’s current exhibition, a display of Tony O’Malley’s rarely seen construction or assemblage pieces – sculptural, colourful works that reveal another dimension to O’Malley’s range of abilities as an artist of extraordinary ingenuity. These three-dimensional works of various shapes and sizes incorporate many components – wood collage, oil, nails, string and other found materials. Be surprised and dazzled in a late night viewing of this body of work by one of Ireland’s most acclaimed artists.

Exhibition Tours
Red Square Kibosh, 18.00 to 22.00pm

Grab a quick tour of the Tony O’Malley exhibition with our resident ‘culture vultures’ - the Butler Gallery Young Critics and self proclaimed ‘Red Square Kibosh’ group, who have been constructively critiquing and discussing the exhibition in the context of the Kilkenny Arts Festival during the summer. These short, sharp and alternative introductory tours take place throughout the evening.

Performance
Constructions of Music and Word, 20.00 – 22.00pm

Tony O’Malley used titles such as ‘Ceol’ and ‘Sea Harp’ for his constructions, and was an avid musician in his own right who played the accordion and mouth organ. Hear scintillating collages of music and word from well-known poets who knew O’Malley personally, and traditional Irish musicians living locally. This musical and poetic response to Constructions, where the Butler Gallery transforms into a ‘speakeasy’ of sorts is hosted by poet, playwright and art critic Brian Lynch.

Exhibition
Solas is Ten
Kitchen Corridor, Kilkenny Castle, 18.00 – 22.00pm

View the fruits of the Butler Gallery’s Solas Family programme in Kilkenny Castle. Solas, the Butler Gallery’s longstanding family programme led by artists Jean Conroy and Jenny Dunne, celebrated 10 years of existence in April 2010 with workshops and a party. The exhibition displays the results of these workshops through photography, drawing, mixed media pieces and a short film. Some of the artists will be there to talk about the work on the night!

Outdoor family workshops with Jean Conroy and Jenny Dunne
Tuesday 9 – Thursday 13 August
11am – 1pm
SOLD OUT

The Butler Gallery held a booked out and extremely enjoyable series of workshops in Kilkenny Castle Park during Kilkenny Arts Festival in response to the Gallery’s Tony O’Malley: Constructions exhibition. After an introductory tour of the exhibition at the Butler Gallery, groups headed outdoors to find inspiration in the Castle Park where they collected natural materials to build their very own colourful Constructions. The results were unique, brightly coloured assemblages using an array of natural and manmade materials.

To mark 10 years of the Solas programme, the Butler Gallery embarked on a book-making project in partnership with Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership, who specialise in books made by children for children. Kids' Own are working with the Butler Gallery and children from the Solas programme to create a new publication that makes us think and understand art more. To help us do that, the group have been interviewing artists from the Butler Gallery Exhibition Programme 2010 - Aideen Barry, George Vaughan, Jackie Nickerson and Declan Rooney.

Photos, videos and more information on the project can be found on our online journal http://journal.kidsown.ie/butlerproject and at http://kidsown.ie/node/103

The project is sponsored by Taxback.com, Kilkenny County Council Arts Office, Kilkenny Education Centre and KiIkenny Library Service.

National Drawing Day
22 May 2010, 11.00 to 15.00

*We are still looking for volunteers for this event – please call Jean at the Gallery on 056 7761106 if you can help out on the day!

Bring yourself, your friends and all the family along for a celebration of drawing, mark-making and creativity for National Drawing Day 2010! Kilkenny’s National Drawing Day is the biggest drawing event in the country and extends across the grounds of the Castle, offering a creative and colourful range of drawing activities. This year, Tree Wrapping, Wood Block Pastels and a new and improved Camera Obscura will once again feature.  Brand new activities responding to the location of Castle Park are an Optical Drawing Device, large-scale collective drawings on the rise entitled Flock and Willow Wall - sculptural drawings with natural materials. This year we are delighted to welcome two artists from Kilkenny’s Cartoon Saloon to our talented team who will be running animation and character development workshops in the Parade Tower.

Drawing workshops are for all ages and no experience is necessary. This year, funded by the OPW and Kilkenny County Council Arts Office with sponsorship from Dunnes, Langtons and Kilkenny Water; National Drawing Day 2010 is absolutely FREE. Come armed with a picnic and keep your eyes peeled for exciting activities! Don’t forget to dress for all weathers and in clothes you don’t mind getting a bit dirty. There will be a registration area near the entrance of the Castle Park where you’ll receive information on the day’s activities, a free National Drawing Day t-shirt and a map.

Participating artists include Steven Aylin, Siobhan Clancy, Jean Conroy, Laura de Burca, Fabian Erlinghauser, Edel Gelston, Etaoin Holahan, Bridget O’Gorman, Lucia Parle, Jacqui Purcell, Liz Smith, Jean-Baptiste Vendamme.

Find out more about National Drawing Day here www.nationalgallery.ie

And join us on Facebook for more updates www.facebook.com

Fiesta
Music in the Gallery with Kilkenny Consort

Sunday 18 April, 2010
2 – 3.30pm

Butler Gallery. Booking recommended

An avid musician, artist George Vaughan takes to the floor of the Butler Gallery among his paintings in Time, Place, Memory, to perform with the Kilkenny Consort - a recorder ensemble that usually plays music from the middle ages, renaissance and baroque periods. Who knows how the work in the exhibition will influence the group’s repertoire! Join us for this informal music event for all ages on the last day of the exhibition.