Inside View

Starting a Collaborative Story h/t @johntierney_ #MyClonmel

THE IDEA STARTED years ago with an email from John Tierney, an archaeologist who thought I might share a passion for exploring the past. Back then, in 2008, we compared notes while visiting the graves inside the Rock of Cashel. More than a decade later, I'm taking those graveside thoughts into a community project I'll follow called #MyClonmel and watch young teens along with third level creative students uncover layers of a town's past.

Sharing #clonmelarts programme items in a busy cafe

CLAIRE BENTLEY took a pair of Rode Smart Lav+ lapel mics into the noisiest part of the Buttermarket Cafe to recap the most prominent coverage of art on the Tipperary Live website today. The top arts coverage is about the Junction Arts Festival.

Listen to "#ClonmelArts According to Google E04" on Spreaker.

I've started listening to #clonmelarts and my phone has started offering me updates at least once an hour. If you want to listen to what I'm learning, you can ask for "Clonmel Junction Arts Podcast" and you'll enjoy a wide diversity of cross-talk about the biggest summer arts festival in the sunny southeast of Ireland.

Podcasting Inside #clonmelarts

AFTER LISTENING TO the South Tipp Arts Podcast we thought it might be useful to create a podcast about the top arts festival in Tipperary--the Clonmel Junction Arts Festival. With the help of creative intern Claire Bentley and the guidance of festival director Cliona Maher, 10 episodes will complement the 2019 running of the Clonmel Junction Arts Festival.

Listen to "CJAF Sneak peek inside the Junction Festival E01" on Spreaker.

Limerick Printmakers at 20

LIMERICK PRINTMAKERS AT 20 (LP at 20) is an exhibition of new prints in The Hunt Museum in Limerick on Thursday, February 14, 2019. The exhibition continues through Monday, April 22, 2019.

Making Prints with Aoife Barrrett #clonmel

WE SPENT 90 minutes with creative artist Aoife Barrett in the South Tipperary Arts Centre and produce 18 pieces of print work using tools and techniques Aoife demonstrated to Dylan (7) and Mia (11). Then the young artists shared their work on Flickr.

Feels Good to Have a Talking Community h/t @larrygmaguire #cong19

ONE OF THE JOYS of being connected online is getting to meet offline and chatting about shared values. I got a half hour of face-to-face chat with @larrygmaguire and learned more about his iron skillet, the importance of having a quiet third space in your own car, and what lies ahead for readers of The Artist's Manifesto. It's all part of Congversation 12, an audio series promoting community for the annual Congregation Unconference.

Congversation 12 with Larry Maguire

 

Using Art as a Community Forum h/t @clionama #cong19

CLIONA MAHER KNOWS how to channel voices from marginalised community members. She explains in a 28 minute congversation how she encourages expressions through effective uses of art.

Cliona Maher: Art in Communities

Facing Down Screen Abolitionists

EVERY TIME WE MEET the grandparents, the sniping starts against touchscreen devices. Whenever I hear the sniping start--and it does every time we meet--I simply bite my tongue and then let the kids tap and explore. But I limit their online forays to specific periods of the day.

Every time I skim through my newsfeeds, I spot chatter about pre-teens and screens  [1] but I think most of the noise I hear comes from privileged technologists who seek retro activities for their families. I also hear from physicians and education experts. But you know what? I have far more time for experts who have studied the sociology of our online world or psychologists who can document exactly what happens when people behave as though they cannot live without primary contact with electronic devices. I need to seek out more of those sorts of learned voices because I want to face down touchscreen abolitionists.

Stories from Artefacts

WE HAVE STARTED collecting stories about family artefacts, listening to young students in the Clonmel Presentation School offer snippets of oral family history. The project will feature in an exhibition mounted by the Tipperary Museum in November 2018.

10 Years After Winning Blog Award

TEN YEARS AFTER winning "Best Technology Blog" in Ireland, I'm still surprised at how quickly the wind went out of the sails of blogging. The world no longer has an appetite for long form meandering commentaries now that Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram have provided the main highways of connectivity.