Update on public sculpture project in south Mayo village

Artist Noah Rose is working on a public sculpture project for Irishtown that's due to be installed this autumn.

Noah – who will give an update on the project for locals on Saturday, May 13, in Irishtown Community Centre – has been researching aspects of the history of Irishtown in the Mayo Library archives and is focusing on the village's historical importance as ‘the Cradle of the Land League’, especially on the rally of 1879 attended by 10,000 people.

That was the first of several ‘Monster Meetings’ across the west of Ireland that led to the formation first of the Mayo Land League and then the National Land League, laying the groundwork for Irish independence.

Noah will be presenting sketches, visualisations and examples of other work he has made for previous commissions. There will be an opportunity to see some of the research, including selected newspaper articles and illustrations from 1879-90 from the Connaught Tribune, Irish Times, Mayo Examiner and other newspapers and journals.

There will be a walk to visit the proposed locations of the Irishtown artworks and an opportunity to talk to the artist about his previous work in Mayo and elsewhere, and to discuss the results of his research into the history of Irishtown.

The event will run from 2 to 4 p.m. and all are welcome. There is no need to book – just turn up at the right time on the day. Refreshments will be provided.

Noah Rose is a sculptor based on the Galway/Mayo border near Headford. He has worked on many sculptures for public spaces across Ireland, the UK, Catalunya, Denmark, Brazil and India. He is interested in the ways in which hidden personal stories and aspects of collective cultural knowledge can be brought to light by sculpture that is made specifically for a particular place. He is currently working on projects in Cork, Leitrim and Lancashire (UK) as well as Mayo.

This Irishtown project is part of Mayo County Council’s public art programme, funded under the Per Cent for Art Scheme by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.