Writings

'Mike Byrne uses the jug form, a common object with three elements and a simple function, which is firmly established in the domestic, to explore the material culture of day-to-day objects and their relationship with the world.’

Blurring Boundaries
Ceramic Review
November/December 2017

Read more →

‘From the early years of the Craft Potters Society of Ireland through to Ceramics Ireland, what resonates most is not just their determination to succeed and to achieve but their desire to exceed expectations, to meet the challenges of an ever changing environment, to be ambitious.’

Touchstone
The Irish Arts Review
Summer, 2017

Read more →

‘The fragility of life, our perception of space, memory; these are themes frequently explored by artists however in this artist’s case, it is an engagement that has given us work of great value, real depth and honesty.’

Memories and Material
Ceramics Review
March/April 2017

Read more →

‘Quinlan’s current Form series provides us with that intriguing lack of self, regarding past use or identity, that dual state of uncertainly and permanence, qualities of both industrial and natural.'

Lost and Found
Ceramics Review
September/October 2016

Read more →

‘Objects define us; they evoke meaning and memory, imbue emotion and create personal histories as we seek to navigate our place in the world.’

The Intimacy of Objects
Catalogue forword
Oliver Sears Gallery
In Residence
October, 2015

Read more →

‘As generations of Irish artists working in clay, whether they have occupied a privileged position or espoused a vernacular tradition, continue to challenge conventional notions of what constitutes ceramic practice, let’s hope that Ceramics Ireland will continue to be there – to motivate, inspire and expand the possibilities - for many years to come.’

Ceramics Ireland
40 Years On
Ceramic Review
July/August 2017

Read more →

Textiles may have provided the narrative, but one that would be powerfully expressed through the language of glass - both strong and fragile, as well as being a poignant reminder of the vulnerability of life - it mirrored perfectly the human condition.

Alison Lowry: (A) Dress
Neues Glas/New Glass art & architecture
No. 3, 2017

Read more →

‘A cursory glance through the historiography of ceramics reminds us that, throughout its complex history, the language surrounding objects of containment has frequently been revised and revisited.’

Exhibition | Vase: Function Reviewed
National Craft Gallery, Ireland
CFIle
March 2016

Read more →

‘Craft certainly needs theoretical discourse, but one that it develops itself, and that is faithful to its own tradition and history .’

What’s in a name: The marginalisation of craft in contemporary society
Engage – the international journal of visual art and gallery education, UK
The Irish Arts Review
Winter 2013

Read more →

‘Creating sculptural and wearable objects from individually fashioned leaves, she has sought inspiration from the natural world, constant change and movement; the notion that ‘when you go outside it never looks the same’.

Design Perspective: Annemarie Reinhold
The Irish Arts Review
Spring, 2017

Read more →

‘So, as we consider our understanding and interpretation of a word we seem to dismiss somewhat easily, we are reminded that it is perhaps where the word ‘vase’ sits, or even the world it inhabits that ultimately defines it.’

Vase or Vessel?
Ceramics Review
November/December 2016

Read more →

‘Using a soft sea-green glaze that interacts with altered stoneware forms during firing, Owen Quinlan’s new work, ‘Mesh’, perfectly captures a moment in time; that precious moment in the kiln when everything aligns and is forever preserved.’

Design Perspective: Owen Quinlan
The Irish Arts Review
Spring 2016

Read more →

‘For Flynn, the emphasis has always been on resolving questions about form, even sometimes revisiting older work, but always moving forward.’

Turning Points
Irish Arts Review
The Irish Arts Review
Winter, 2012

Read more →