Celebrate International Women’s Day at Museum of Country Life
THE National Museum of Ireland - Country Life, Turlough Park, Castlebar, is celebrating International Women’s Day on March 8 with a special talk about women’s magazines in Ireland in the 1950s and ‘60s.
Dr. Catriona Clear, lecturer at the National University of Ireland Galway, will deliver the talk entitled ‘No Regrets for the Days that are Gone’ at 3 p.m. on Sunday, March 8. Based on her book about the letters and problems written to Woman’s Life and Woman’s Way in the 1950s and ‘60s, the talk will examine these magazines in the wider social and historical context of the time.
Dr. Clear provides a unique insight into one of the few forums for female expression in Ireland during a time of changing societal expectations on gender roles. This era saw more Irish women than ever before participating in paid work, trade unions and voluntary organisations, but women were also still hugely underrepresented in politics and public life.
At the same time, women who came of age from the late 1950s onwards experienced a freedom which their mothers and aunts - married or single, in the workplace or the home - had never known.
Problem pages and letters printed in Irish-produced magazines during this era enabled women from all walks of life to express their opinions and seek guidance on the social changes they saw happening around them.
Admission is free but booking is required. Telephone (094) 9031751 or email educationtph@museum.ie.
The talk is delivered in association with the museum’s current exhibition Kitchen Power: Women’s Experiences of Rural Electrification.
Finding Voice, Creating Choice
The museum is also hosting an open day event on the eve of International Women’s Day, Saturday, March 7.
‘Finding Voice, Creating Choice’ aims to bring women of all nationalities together for a day of discussion on personal transformation, poetry, music, health and wellbeing.
The event, from 12 noon to 4 p.m., offers an opportunity for women to share their life experiences and learn from each other. Admission to this event is free with no booking required.
For further event details, visit www.museum.ie.