Background Timeline of Project

July 2004

Steffan Jones-Hughes from the Regional Print Centre in Wrexham, and Jeanette Orrell, both visual artists based in Denbighshire, visit Ireland on a CCAT Interreg Go and See grant from Aberystwyth Arts Centre to look at making connections with arts organisations and artists in Ireland. One of the first people to get in touch is Lucina Russell, Arts Officer for County Kildare, who makes the connection with Leinster Printmaking Studio and Margaret Becker. They arrange to meet and discuss the possibility of developing a collaborative project between Welsh and Irish printmakers. After the initial Interreg funded visit to Ireland a group was established to try to raise funds for more exchange.

March 2006

Members of Leinster Printmaking Studio contact Steffan Jones-Hughes with a view to taking the project forward. Monica de Bath, Irish Project Coordinator, secures CCAT funding from Temple Bar to enable a visit over to Wales. Monica de Bath, Eilish McCann, Alison Craig, Jane Copeman, and Steffan Jones-Hughes meet at Galeri in Caernarfon. The project begins to take shape. A formal initiation process takes place where artists from Wales are linked to artists from Ireland and told to “communicate and see what happens!”

September 2006

As a result of taking part in a residency at the Regional Print Centre, Yale College, Wrexham, Australian artist Veronica Calarco becomes involved in the project. Linda Davies, Alison Craig and Veronica visit Ireland. They visit the Leinster Printmaking Studio, (L.P.S.) for an afternoon of discussion with about 10 interested prospective participants. This is followed by a visit to the home of Leinster Printmaking Studio member Una Collins, who provides a warm reception. The next day they visit Monica de Bath’s studio.

October 2006

Discussions are followed by exchange visits between artists from both studios.

March 2007

One of the artists involved, Alison Craig, had been a part of our Professional Printmakers Programme at the Regional Print Centre. She takes on the role of project coordinator from the Welsh side. Alison works initially in partnership with Steffan, and latterly more on her own, to develop funding applications and exhibition opportunities. The project successfully secures funding from Wales Arts International and a-n magazine.

August 2007

Diana Williams and Eirian Llwyd visit Ireland as a result of the WAI funding. The project is included in the Regional Print Centre publication, International Projects 2002-2007

October 2007

A group of Welsh artists, Steffan Jones-Hughes, Jeanette Orrell, Andrew Smith, Linda Davies and Alison Craig travel to Ireland and visit the Leinster Printmaking Studio. They meet and discuss the project with the Irish artists and Geraldine O’Reilly, artist & printmaker, who had acted as curator at the beginning of the project thanks to CCAT Interreg Temple Bar funding secured by Monica de Bath. A number of visits are made by the Welsh artists to the Graphic Studio Gallery, the Original Print Gallery, Rubicon Gallery, Gallery of Photography, Irish Museum of Modern Art, & National Museum of Ireland. During this period a number of workshops take place at the two print studios to enable artists to meet and explore their ideas.

February 2008

Margaret Becker, Eileen Keane and Pamela de Brí travel to Wales to meet Diana Williams and Eirian Llwyd at Eirian s house on Anglesey. They then make their way across Wales, visiting Oriel Ynys Môn and Llanberis in Snowdonia, to meet Linda Davies, Steffan Jones-Hughes, Ian Williams and Jane Copeman at the Regional Print Centre

April 2008

A publication is produced in Ireland to promote the project. This is funded by a combination of sources including CCAT.

May 2008

An exhibition of work in progress is held at the Riverbank Arts Centre, Newbridge, County Kildare, and the publication is launched. Andrew Smith and Alison Craig return to Ireland with work for the exhibition. This exhibition is made possible through the support of Lucina Russell, Arts Officer for County Kildare, who opens the exhibition and who had helped to broker the initial relationship between the two studios. Monica de Bath gives a welcoming talk in Irish and English, and Alison Craig responds (in English) for the Wales-based artists with Diana Williams providing an on-the-spot translation into Welsh. Musicians playing traditional Irish music complement the opening evening. The following day, groups of local schoolchildren visit the exhibition and hear an informal talk by the artists Eileen Keane and Linda Davies, from Ireland and Wales respectively. Pamela de Brí takes part in an interview on RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta

June 2008

A blog is set up on a-n (artists’ newsletter) website

September 2008

Pamela de Brí becomes Irish Project Coordinator. Monica de Bath continues to be involved in the project.

Veronica Calarco applies for the exhibition to be part of Country Arts South Australia touring exhibition programme. Following Veronica’s proposal the project is selected as the international component of the 2009/10 Country Arts touring programme. Over a period of 18 months, from June 2009 until December 2010, the project will be viewed in over 15 Galleries in South Australia.

December 2008

The participation of Australian artist Veronica Calarco results in a number of the artists being included in the Celtica Festival in Port Adelaide, South Australia, in December 2008. (Artists included are Alison Craig, Andrew Smith, Deirdre Shanley, Pamela de Brí, Eileen Keane, and Rebecca Homfray.).

March 2009

Completed prints from the project are shown at the Graphic Studio Gallery, Dublin. This is as a result of connections made by Margaret Becker, who is also a member of the Graphic Studio. The exhibition is selected by manager, and renowned printmaker, Robert Russell and Catherine O' Riordan. This exhibition represents a summary of the project as it stands and provides a focus for reflection and evaluation. Alison Craig, Pamela de Brí and Graphic Studio member Liam O Broin all give “Artist Talks” at the opening. A transcript of Liam’s speech can be found on the Dublin Graphic Studio Gallery website. An article appeared in Golwg (Welsh Current Affairs Magazine) featuring Eirian Llwyd and Diana Williams. Pamela de Brí is invited onto the panel of Imeall on TG4 - Irish language television channel, and the project is featured on that programme. It is also included in the Irish Arts Review.

June 2009

First exhibition of Le Chéile in Australia opens in Elliston, SA

July 2009

There is an exhibition at the Alternative Entertainment Arts Centre, Tallaght, Co Dublin.

A catalogue of the Australian exhibition, prepared and designed by Veronica Calarco, is launched.

August 2009

Pamela de Brí travels to Wales in August to meet Veronica Calarco, while she is on a visit. Alison Craig meets Pamela and they travel together to meet Veronica and Jane Copeman at Andrew Smith's house in Harlech. Alison also takes Pamela to the Eisteddfod in Bala where they meet Diana Williams. The following day Ian Williams meets Pamela and Alison at Alison's house. A project specific blogspot is established by Pamela de Brí to showcase the artists involved in the project. Much of the information on the artists is drawn from the catalogue compiled by Veronica for the Country Arts S.A. touring exhibitions.

www.lecheileprintproject.blogspot.com

Second exhibition of Le Chéile in Australia opens in Jamestown, SA

October 2009

A residential organized by Alison Craig takes place at Nant Gwrtheryn. Four artists from Ireland and six from Wales meet for 4 days and work intensely, bringing the project to the next stage.

November 2009

Artists involved in Le Cheile feature again as part of Celtica 2009, Celtic Roots II, in Port Adelaide, South Australia. Andrew Smith goes to Australia to meet Veronica Calarco and see the exhibition. He runs a workshop and makes further connections. Pamela de Brí, Alison Craig, and Andrew Smith and Veronica all have work on show.

The Le Chéile project opens in the prestigious New Land Gallery, Port Adelaide on 27^th Nov and continues there until January 17^th 2010. Celtic band, Blind Mary, play and the opening is well attended and highly praised. Other galleries are now taking an interest.

January 2010

Exhibition opens at Rhyl Library Arts Centre.

October 2010

Residency at Cill Rialaig, Co Kerry

September 2011

Exhibition in Oriel Ynys Mon

Frances Carlile

I lived in rural Mid Wales for twenty five years and now live on the boarders of Powys. The Welsh landscape has always been part of my work both in sculpture and print. I have recently begun to make prints based on imaginary fairy tales and myths. Myths and legends are a universal language and belong to everyone. I am hoping to make links with Welsh and Irish traditional stories inorder to inform my work.

I think of landscape in terms of space, as a backdrop, an arena or a stage. Within this arena an imaginary protagonist could be enacting a solitary drama. The protagonist could be present in the form of an animal, person or tree, or absent with the stage empty. The beginning and end of the narrative are not important for the work, although sometimes I construct a series of images that could be set in sequence. The work is about quietness, solitude and absence.

Tara Dean

I first became interested in the project after visiting the exhibition ' Le Cheile' at Rhyl Arts Centrein January this year.

The exhibition really made me think about communication through images.

I like to receive things by post, especially when the envelopes or parcels have been decorated in some way.

Seeing this combination of print and how it can be used to layer and layer between artists is something that I would like to investigate .

Looking at the images develop into finished pieces.

My work recently has revolved around routes and roots and multi layers of colour using the screen. I have been experimenting with alternative surfaces to print onto in particular clay and fired tiles.

The images above are all screen prints

Le Chéile at the New Land Gallery, Port Adelaide

Report from Australia: Le Chéile at the New Land Gallery, Port Adelaide

Le Chéile looks excellent in the New Land Gallery, Port Adelaide. It is the premier art space in Port Adelaide, a short drive from the city. The streets of Port Adelaide are wide and spacious leading to the harbour and waterfront where the New Land Gallery is located.

The gallery has a high ceiling with good lighting, a foyer space with the exhibition title Le Chéile written high up as visitors enter the building and print works leading into the main space. 123 works are showing by 17 participants from the start of the project and includes recent new participants. The selection process by Veronica Calarco, Rob Johnson (Visual Arts Manager, Country Arts SA) and Katinka Gleim (Visual Arts Officer) has really worked in creating a consolidated exhibition out of the many the different collaborations, ideas and processes. Additional work by each artist is presented in a highly visible print browser. At the time of writing there are two sales from the exhibition (Steffan and Veronica). The exhibition’s coherency is helped by the combination of several works in large frames; often, but not always collaborative partners are framed together creating a substantial wall presence. Other works, mostly the larger prints are also in individual frames. The artists books and folios are displayed clearly in cases, with one sketchbook accessible to touch. The private view was well attended. Vicky Reynolds, Head of Printmaking at TAFE School of Arts opened the show talking about process and printmaking with a musical performance by Irish band Blind Mary.

The exhibition has shown in Elliston Community Hall, Jamestown Belalie Art Gallery, Bordertown Civic Centre Walkway Gallery and will continue to Roxby Downs Regional Gallery and continues its tour well into 2010 throughout South Australia. I was able to visit the Riddoch Art Gallery in Mount Gambier with Rob Johnston and Katinka Gleim whilst installing another show Parallel at Mellicent Art Gallery, both towns located toward the Victoria Border in the South East of the State. The Riddoch Art Gallery is run by Lucia Pichler, SA South East Director and Lucia gave a tour of the gallery and the Gooch collection of Aboriginal art from Utopia (aboriginal country near Alice Springs). The collection consists of 2D and 3D work by, mainly, living and recent contemporary aboriginal artists and is a rich and diverse collection. The Riddoch also has a national collection of contemporary art making a comprehensive selection of Australian art with artists such as Ian Abdullah and Ann Newmarch. The photograph features Lucia Pichler and myself in front of a large triptych by John Beard (painter born Wales 1945) one of the paintings in the collection. Le Chéile will be touring to the Riddoch when it reopens after rebuilding later 2010.

With the touring programme organised by Country Arts SA Le Chéile is reaching a wide audience as it travels throughout South Australia. The exposure in this substantial exhibition form adds to the central theme of the project, that of distant communication through printmaking; ideas flow between art work and exhibition viewer as individual and cultural connections are discovered and reinvented. The exhibition has been reviewed in Imprint, December 2009 edition.

There are plenty of visitors to Port Adelaide throughout the week and at weekends, particularly during festivals. The Celtica festival has attracted a large audience over this weekend (5 and 6th December). Organised by Suzanne Laslett it showcases performers with Celtic heritage and association, musicians on two stages, numerous stalls, Scotland focus, Welsh and Irish language classes, food stalls, traditional dancing, demonstrations of musical instruments and an impressive line up of bands including Rickety Bridge and Bric a Brac, the Melbourne based band with strong Brittany connections. The visual art element of Celtica was comandingly inaugurated by bagpipes leading all from the Gaff gallery to the . The exhibitions include Wales and Ireland Le Chéile participants.

Thanks must go to Veronica Calarco for instigating the Australian participation in Le Chéile and putting together the proposal for exhibition; Rob Johnston and Katinka Gleim for selecting and organising the touring exhibition and Suzanne Laslett for organising the Celtica festival with visual art element (coordinated again by Veronica) creating a strong Wales/Ireland art presence in Port Adelaide at the moment.