The MacNamaras of Ennistymon House by Tessie Hill

Tessie Hill being interviewed about the MacNamaras of Ennistymon House by Frances Madigan for Cuimhneamh an Chláir. Tessie was a very popular branch librarian in Ennistymon Library from 1962 to 2000. Posted on Youtube on the 4th of January 2016 by Cuimhneamh an Chláir.

Erasmus Trip to Cliffs of Moher and Galway

"Some memories of our Erasmus trip to the Cliffs of Moher and Galway." Posted on Youtube on the 22nd of November 2015 by Manon Grelaud.

Courthouse Gallery, Ennistymon, seeks submissions for exhibition program in 2017 and 2018

The Courthouse Gallery in Ennistymon is seeking submissions for their exhibition program in 2017 and 2018. The Courthouse Gallery features a main art gallery and a smaller Red Couch Space. The gallery is interested in exhibiting a wide range of visual art, including collaborations and multi-media projects for exhibition in both gallery spaces, and is interested to hear from emerging and professional artists based locally and nationwide.

Deadline for submission: Monday 29th February 2016

If you are interested in applying, please post your submission, including:

1. Artist’s CV
2. Brief artist’s statement
3. Description of proposed show,
4. 8-10 JPEG images and/or MPG file on CD

Materials cannot be returned. Online submissions not accepted.

Please send submissions to:
Trudi van der Elsen - Curator,
The Courthouse Gallery,
Parliament Street,
Ennistymon,
County Clare.

For more information and/or a floor plan please contact:
E: info@thecourthousegallery.com
W: thecourthousegallery.com
T: 065-7071630

The Courthouse Gallery is supported by Clare County Council

County Clare Trazz Experience - musicians wanted

Music Generation Clare has announced a very exciting new opportunity for secondary school students: the inaugural County Clare Trazz Experience, where traditional music will be fused with elements of jazz, for a truly unique sound.

Expressions of interest are currently being accepted from secondary school musicians of any instrument and any genre of music. Led by Pádraig Rynne, participants in the project will form part of a large ensemble music experience, with rehearsals commencing on 17 January and culminating in a performance, weekend of May 27th, 2016.

Rehearsals will take place on ten Sunday mornings, from 10am – 1pm in An Teach Ceoil, Sráid an Teampaill, Ennistymon. The rehearsal schedule is as follows:

17 and 24 January 2016
7 and 21 February 2016
6 and 13 March 2016
10 and 24 April 2016
8 and 22 May (performance to follow the final rehearsal on 22 May)

Please note that all interested candidates must be able to read music.

To apply, please fill out the expression of interest form and return either by email or post to:

Email: info@musicgenerationclare.ie

Mail to:
Music Generation Clare,
Limerick and Clare Education and Training Board,
Station Road, Ennis.

A participation fee of €75 for 10 rehearsals and performance applies.

For further information about this and other exciting new musical experiences contact:

Emer O'Flaherty, Development Officer
Limerick and Clare Education and Training Board, Station Road, Ennis, County Clare
t: +353 65 682 8107 & e: info@musicgenerationclare.ie Click here for the expression of interest form...

Setanta Sports Book of the Year - new Irish sports book award

Dub Sub Confidential by John Leonard has won the inaugural Setanta Sports Book of the Year award. The book is an honest retelling of Leonard’s experience as Stephen Cluxton's understudy on the Dublin football team and deals with the aftermath of abuse and battles with drug and alcohol addiction.

Two other GAA books made the shortlist. Until Victory Always, Donegal football manager Jim McGuinness’ memoir was presented with the Sports Book of the Year award at the Bord Gáis Energy Irish Book Awards 2015. Relentless, Mary White’s account of the Cork Ladies Footballers and their remarkable dominance, also made the shortlist.

The other shortlisted titles for the Setanta Sports Book of the Year were No Borders: Playing Rugby for Ireland, by Tom English, and historian Paul Rouse’s study, Sport and Ireland.

Leonard received a €1,500 cash prize, a specially commissioned trophy, and €10,000 worth of TV advertising on Setanta Sports.

Pop-Up Garden Community Challenge at Clare Garden Festival 2016

The Pop-Up Garden Community Challenge at Clare Garden Festival 2016 asks groups/organisation to create a garden based on their interpretation of the theme ‘Upcycling and Composting in my Garden’ to be displayed and judged at Clare Garden Festival on 24th April 2016.

FIRST PRIZE: €400 proudly supported by Clare Co Council Environment Section; we aim to source further prizes for this competition. Karen Foley, Environmental Awareness Officer with Clare Co Co Environment section explains: “The Pop-Up Garden community challenge at Clare Garden Festival provides a great opportunity for groups of all ages to engage in a communal project showcasing their gardening skills and hopefully coming out on top to receive a cash prize for their group. Clare County Council Environment section are delighted to support this competition again in 2016.” She continued by saying: “The theme for 2016 called ‘Upcycling and Composting in my Garden’ allows for plenty of application for the competitors making for great learning and idea generation and transferral for viewers. Examples of this could include the use of household and garden wastes like wood and plastics in the garden and composting solutions for small gardens.”

The competition is now open for application and we entries will be taken up until 12th February 2016. After that the sketching and building of the Gardens begins. See more details, application form and Q&A also on http://claregardenfestival.com/Competitions.html

Image above shows the winner of the Community PopUp Garden 2015.

A Poem for Ireland Poetry Competition – Schools and Libraries commemorate 1916

The Department of Education and Skills, the public library service and Libraries Development, Local Government Management Agency are holding the A Poem for Ireland Poetry Competition for post-primary schools, as part of the commemoration events for Ireland 2016.

A Poem for Ireland Competition Format

Round One: School Competition, 6th January 2016 – 29th February 2016
Students in each post-primary school year are invited to submit a poem on Ireland past and / or present for the competition to the Year Head before the 29th of February 2016. Poems may be submitted in English or Irish and must be original works.

29th February - 4th March 2016: The winning entry for each year should be submitted to each local library branch (see http://www.librariesireland.ie/services-to-schools/post-primary-schools/ for branch details) by the 4th of March 2016.

Round Two: County Competition, March 2016
A judging panel set up by the local library service will adjudicate on all schools’ winning entries. A county winner will be selected and announced at an awards event hosted by the public library service.

Round Three: National Final, April 2016
County winners will be reviewed by a national panel of judges set up by Libraries Development, LGMA and shortlisted to eight national finalists. A national final will take place in April 2016. The national panel of judges will assess each of the eight entries on the day and will award a national winner. A national dignitary will attend and present the prize to the overall winner.

Prizes
All prizes at local level will be determined by each local authority individually.

National Winner: €1,000
National Runner Up: €500
National 3rd prize: €250
National Finalists: €50 vouchers

All finalist entries will be uploaded to www.libariesireland.ie, www.askaboutireland.ie and www.scoilnet.ie. For competition posters, further information, terms and conditions, see www.librariesireland.ie/services-to-schools.

Costa Book awards - winners announced

The 2015 Costa Book Awards have been announced. Five category awards have been presented from which the overall Costa Book of the Year will be selected on January 20th.

A God In Ruins by Kate Atkinson has been awarded the Costa Novel Award. Atkinson previously won the award in 2013 for her novel, Life After Life and A God in Ruins is described as a companion piece rather than a sequel to the previous book. Anne Enright had been shortlisted in this category for her Irish family study The Green Road.

Andrew Michael Hurley has won the Costa First Novel Award for his gothic horror The Loney. Considered to be at the forefront of a new wave of British gothic fiction, the judges agreed that “this book is as close to the perfect first novel as you can get”. Sara Baume’s acclaimed one-man-and-his-dog chronicle Spill Simmer Falter Wither had been shortlisted for the award.

Andrea Wulf won the Biography Award for The Invention of Nature: The Adventures of Alexander Von Humboldt, The Lost Hero of Science, a book about a largely unknown scientist who inspired generations of thinkers and writers and has more things named after him than anyone who has ever lived.

Scottish poet Don Paterson was awarded the Costa Poetry Award for his collection of sonnets addressed to friends and strangers, the living and the dead and the author himself, dealing with contradiction, the dream world and the divided self.

The Children's Book Award went to Frances Hardinge for her dark Victorian murder-mystery The Lie Tree, a book that will grip readers of all ages with its blend of history and fantasy.

All winners of Costa Book Awards receive £5000 and will compete for the title of Costa Book of the Year.

The Story of Clare’s Hurling Champions of 1914 published

Since May 2015, Clare Museum has been holding a temporary exhibition to commemorate the Senior and Junior Clare Hurling teams that won their respective All-Ireland championships in 1914. The exhibition is based on objects in the museum’s reserve collection.

As an educational support for the exhibition, the museum has recently produced a booklet which explores the experience of those associated with these hurling teams in the contexts of the events being marked during the Decade of Centenaries.

Included in the publication are photographs of items related not only to the All-Ireland Hurling Championship of 1914, but also objects and documents connected to the First World War, the War of Independence and Civil War.

Researched by Dr Tomás MacConmara and designed by museum volunteer Karen Dunn, the booklet contains original research and will be of particular interest to those interested in local history.

Limited numbers of the booklet are available to the public free of charge at Clare Museum, Arthur’s Row, Ennis and are available on a first-come, first-serve basis.

The publication can also be viewed online at
http://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/claremuseum/projects/high_prestige.pdf

The image above shows the ball used when Clare won its first All-Ireland Hurling title against Laois on 18th October 1914. See http://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/claremuseum/riches_of_clare/energy/1914_hurling_ball.htm

Cuimhneamh an Chláir on Clare FM on the 6th, 7th and 8th January

Cuimhneamh an Chláir recently asked Paula Carroll to listen to the stories they have gathered and to compile radio features showcasing the rich oral heritage of County Clare. Over the next few days you can hear Paula’s selections on Morning Focus on Clare FM between 11am and 12pm.

Tuesday 6th January 2016:
WOMEN’S WORK: In this piece we hear about Womens’ Work - working on the bog, growing vegetables, tending fowl, drawing water, raising children. The voices you will hear are Susan Williams from Kilfenora, Teresa Flynn from Mountshannon, Nora Canavan from Doolin (who at 107 is one of Clare's oldest citizens).

Wednesday 7th January 2016:
TRANSPORT: In this piece we hear about how people travelled - from the first car in Quin, to the first sighting of an aeroplane over Scariff, to the trusty old High Nellie. You will hear the voices of John Hastings from Quin, Nora Canavan from Doolin, Margaret Waterstone from Mountshannon, and Susan Williams from Kilfenora.

Thursday 8th January 2016:
CALENDAR CUSTOMS: In this day’s piece we hear about calendar customs throughout the year - from St. Brigids Day traditions in February right through to Christmas. You will hear the voices of Nan Aherne from Ennistymon, Paddy Tuohy from Whitegate, Frank Davis from Ennistymon, Teresa Flynn from Mountshanon, and Peggy Hogan from Feakle.