SIRIUS PRESENTS AN EVENING WITH PAUL TIERNAN & INTERFERENCE FRIDAY 6 MARCH 8PM

Celebrating the his new CD
"Earthquakes Start With Little Cracks"
PAUL TIERNAN
performs for one night only in Sirius Arts Centre

Friday 6 March 8pm
with INTERFERENCE

Tickets €18/€15 concession

To puchase tickets contact Sirius at 021 481 3790

For more information on Paul Tiernan visit his website at: www paultiernan.com

To purchase Paul's new CD visit CD Baby at: http://cdbaby.com/cd/paultiernan3

For more inforamtion on Interference visit their my space site at:http://www.myspace.com/interferenceireland

Sirius Arts Centre Call for Entries - OPEN HOUSE 2

Sirius Arts Centre presents - Open House 2 - 200931st January - 1st March
A unique group exhibition of Cork artists Opening Saturday 31st January at 2pm
Exhibition runs from 31st January - 1st March 2009

To celebrate the creative energy of artists living and working in the Cork area Sirius Arts Centre is once again inviting artists to exhibit in a unique group exhibition at the Sirius Arts Centre. Admission is open to artists over the age of 18, working in a variety of materials. All work must be wall based for this exhibition.

There is no theme to this exhibition but there are restrictions regarding work submitted as follows (Please read carefully):
* Art works will be accepted on a first come, first served basis (space is limited).
* Artists must contact Sirius (021 481 3790) to be considered for exhibition. Drop-off of the works will be accepted on Friday 16th or Saturday 17th of January only between 11am - 4.30pm.
*Artists must be living & working in the Cork area and 18 years of age or over.
* All artwork must be wall-based and delivered ready for hanging. (ie framed, mounted and with a proper hanging device on the back)
* Due to space limitations artwork can be no bigger than 80cm/32" squared.
* Each artist may submit no more than 2 pieces of artwork.
* This is not a juried exhibition, but the content of the work must be of an appropriate quality and be suitable for an "all ages" audience. (Sirius has the right to refuse work)
* Sirius Arts Centre will take 30% commission on any sales of artwork.
* Sirius Arts Centre will do the utmost to care for submitted works, but is not responsible for any damage to artwork.
* All unsold work must be collected by March 7th.

!!Work submitted that is not ready for hanging will not be included in the exhibition!!

Please note: Unsold work must be picked up from Sirius after the exhibtion between the 2nd - 7th March or the work will be destroyed.Hanging will be done at the descretion of Sirius Arts Centre. As many works as possible will be hung though this will be dependend on quality of work, the amount of work submitted and space limitation in the Sirius Galleries.

Drop off dates are: Friday 16th & Saturday 17th of January between 11am - 4:30 pm(If you can not make these times please contact Sirius 021/4813790)

Exhibition opening reception will take place on Saturday 31st January at 2pm

Exhibition closes on Sunday 1st March.For further information contact:Sirius Arts Centre, Cobh, Co. Cork - Tel. 021/4813790 email cobharts@iol.ie

Christmas Holidays for Sirius Arts Centre

Sirius Arts Centre
will close from Saturday 20 December and will reopen on Wednesday 7 January 2009
Thank you to all for your support in 2008 - Wishing you a Happy Holiday time!
All the best from the staff and Board of Directors at Sirius!

MUNDY AT SIRIUS IN FEBRUARY!!!

Sirius Arts Centre presents

an evening with

MUNDY

plus support

Monday 16 February 8pm

Tickets €20

Tickets are selling fast!

Contact Sirius at 021 481 3790 for more information or to book tickets

Sirius Collecting Food Items for St. Vincent De Paul During the Christmas Season

Sirius Arts Centre is collecting non-perishable food items for St. Vincent De Paul during the weeks leading up to Christmas.

Giving is easy - just drop your donation of a non-perishable food item into the box located in our foyer. Needed items include: baby food, baby formula, juices, canned foods, rice, dried beans etc... We will be collecting up until we close on the 19th so you've still time.

Share the gift of the season and donate to this worthy cause and make Christmas a little brighter for someone in need.

A GIFT OF HEALTH AND WELLBEING AT SIRIUS ARTS CENTRE SUNDAY 14 DECEMBER FROM 3 - 6PM

Sirius Arts Centre in partnership with Christmas in Cobh presents "A Gift of Health and Wellbeing"

a showcase of local providers of health, beauty and wellbeing services. From Yoga to acupunture, physiotherapy to beauty treatments, a wide range of practioners will be on hand with gift vouchers available for sale. Its a great way to give a gift of health for the holidays to those you care for.

For more information contact Sirius at 021 481 3790

CADENZA CONCERT MOVED TO THE COBH HERITAGE CENTRE DUE TO OVERWHELMING RESPONSE

Our Concert of Christmas Cheer with Cadenza featuring the singing talents of : Ryan Morgan, Eileen Plummer, Jim Quinlan and Brenda Murphy. Musical Direction by Alan Carney has been moved to the Cobh Heritage Centre due to the huge interest in tickets.

The concert will still take place on Friday 12 December at 8pm and tickets are €18 which includes free mulled wine and mince pies sponsored by Londis in New Town and Sirius.

Tickets are still available and can be booked either via telephone or in person during office hours. We have a credit/laser card facility available (there is a small fee for this service).

SANTA AT SIRIUS!!

Christmas in Cobh and Sirius Arts Centre have invited Santa to come and visit his friends this year in our West Gallery. As you know, Santa is a very busy man at this time of year, but he has been able to keep a spot in his diary for us. Santa arrives in Cobh on Saturday 6th of December at 12 noon via boat and will be in his chair waiting to meet his friends from 12:30 - 4:00pm and will return again on Saturday 13 from 12:30 - 4:00pm.

There is a cost of €5 which goes to Christmas in Cobh for organising the event, photos are extra. Each child will recieve a present from Santa during their visit.

In Residence at Sirius: Zorka Project

For the month of November Sirius Arts Centre is pleased to welcome ZORKA PROJECT from Poland to our Artist in Residency Programme. This residency is a cooperation between Sirius and the Month of Photography Festival in Krakow, Poland. While in residence the artists will be working on a new body of work that focuses on Polish people working and living in Ireland.

Zorka Project are Monika Bereżecka and Urzula Jablonska (Urzula is standing in for Monica Redzisz who is normally the other half of Zorka Project but is busy about to have a new baby).

Redzisz and Bereżecka met while studying at the department of photography at the Academy of Fine Arts in Poznań. In 2000 they set up a photography group under the name of "Zorka Project". Since then, they have been working as a team, taking photographs and writing press articles together. In their cycles of portraits, so far, they have shown: Warsaw female tram drivers, nuns, bodybuilders, refugees, drag queens and homeless mothers with children.

Their works has been published in Gazeta Wyborcza, Rzeczpospolita, Życie Warszawy, Polityka, Przekrój, Playboy, City Magazine, Aktivist and in photography magazines such as Pozytyw, Fototapeta, Foto, Biuletyn Fotograficzny, as well as in various womens' magazines.

In 2003, during "Month of Photography" in Cracow, they exhibited a cycle featuring female nudes titled "Laski" ("Babes"). The following year they displayed "Mocarze" ("Bodybuilders"), which is a cycle of portraits of Polish strongmen and women. In 2004 Zorka Project were granted an artistic scholarship for young artists by the Polish Ministry for Culture.

Zorka Project were also exhibited at Sirius Arts Centre and Cork Institute of Technology in 2007 as part of "Teraz Malopolska" a group exhibition of contemporary Polish photography. We hope that a future exhibition can be curated for exhibition at Sirius in 2010 from the work they are creating here.

Jablonska and Bereżecka live and work in Warsaw, Poland.

Jim Wilson Returns to Sirius to Promote His New Book

Sirius Arts Centre presents
popular natural historian
Jim Wilson

Thursday 4 December at 8pm
to promote his new book,
written with Oran O'Sullivan and published by Collins Press

"Ireland's Garden Birds
How to Attract Identify and Care for Garden Birds.

Tickets €6/€4 concession

After a short talk about the book Jim will be signing copies.

Whether you are an avid gardener, or just like feeding birds in your garden, this guide is an essential companion. An illustrated guide to Ireland's garden birds and wildlife gardening, the book provides information on the 60 birds most likely to be seen from the window, how to attract them into your garden and how to care for the. Part one features all the main gardening issues and highlights planting schemes to make your garden a haven for wildlife. In part two each species is described in a style designed to appeal to all, with detailed facts on identification, status and abundance, feeding habits, songs, call and breeding season facts. The descriptions are back up throughout the book with high quality photographs.

To book tickets for this event please contact Sirius at (021) 481 3790.

Christmas Cheer at Sirius Arts Centre!

Sirius presnts an evening of Christmas Cheer with

Cadenza

Featuring the singing talents of
Ryan Morgan, Eileen Plummer, Jim Quinlan and Brenda Murphy
Musical Direction by Alan Carney
Friday 12 December 8pmTickets €18 - on sale NOW!

Ticket includes complementary mulled wine and minced pie sponsored by Sirius Arts Centre and Ray Keating of Londis, New Town, Cobh

Following the outstanding success of last year’s Christmas concerts The Sirius Arts Centre is delighted to announce the return of CADENZA, under the musical direction of Alan Carney and featuring the singing talents of; Ryan Morgan, Eileen Plummer, Jim Quinlan and Brenda Murphy. Presenting a programme of festive favourites, popular pieces, and classical compositions, a winter’s evening with Cadenza in the beautiful surroundings of Sirius Arts Centre’s West Gallery will definitely get you in the spirit of Christmas. Tickets for this event last year sold out in a flash so advanced booking is recommended to avoid disappointment!
Complementary Minced pies sponsored by Ray Keating Londis, New Town, Cobh

SIRIUS ARTS CENTRE PRESENTS AN EVENING WITH CATHY DAVEY!

Sirius Arts Centre is the backdrop for this special evening of Cathy Davey's BARE BONES TOUR!! This is a chance to see this celebrated artist to play intimate venues without being too noisy for sensitive ears. Rearranged songs to better suit candlelight. A total of three musicians playing as many instruments as they can fit in their suitcases. Definitely something you won't want to miss!

MONDAY 24 NOVEMBER 8pm (doors 7:45)
Tickets €22
Opening act: Sian Brown

Tickets are going extremely fast so you'd want to get on your bike if you hope to get a seat... (The West Gallery can only seat 80 people.....)

For more information on Cathy Davey you can visit her Website and My space sites at:

http://www.myspace.com/cathydavey

http://www.cathydavey.ie/

Sirius Arts Centre presents an evening with GUY BARKER

Sirius presents an evening with one of Britain's finest 'post-bob' and jazz trumpeters, Guy Barker, appearing for one night only - TUESDAY 18 November at 8pm. Tickets €15.

Guy's new CD release "The Amadeus Suite" is recieving rave reviews, he's definitely one of the hottest acts going and this fully acoustic performance in the Sirius is sure to be one you won't want to miss. For tickets contact Sirius at 021 481 3790 or via email at cobharts@iol.ie

Sileziany - On the Wind's Wings in the Gallery

Sileziany is a biannale international textile exhibition, developed in 1995 by Mlodziezowy Dom Kultury (Youth House of Culture) in Bytom, Poland and curated by Polish textile artist, Alexsandra Herisz.

An international contest for children and young people, the final exhibition includes selected works by the winners of the young people's contest and professional artists' from different countries. Each edition of Sileziany focuses on a specific theme. For the exhibition in Sirius the theme is "On the Wind's Wings". The works are combined in exhibition to illustrate a wide range of textile working methods and interpretations on the theme with the aim of exchanging and sharing ideas on European Heritage.

This year Sileziany includes the work of Artist, Marie Brett who is based in West Cork and two works by school children from Cobh, County Cork. These works were initially exhibited with the premiere of the exhibition in Poland last year. Also included are artworks from Ukraine, Poland, Slovenia and other contries.

Sileziany is part of an ongoing partnership between MDK and Sirius Arts Centre. To date the two organisations have completed a music project with young people from Cobh Youth Services and now are working as facilitators for Cork Textile Network to provide opportunities for Irish Textile Artists to meet with artists from Poland.

Five artists from MDK were in residence at Sirius for the first two weeks of the exhibition and during their time here they ran a series of workshops with Cobh YMCA Parents and Kids Together, St Raphaels Centre, a local woman's group, children from Norwood School, and an open workshop for adults.

During their visit Aleksadra Herisz and the other Polish artists met with Cork Textile Network for a workshop and discussion to continue building their connection and sharing skills. It is planned that the two groups will meet in Cobh again next year to participate in another skills exchange workshop and that some of the members of Cork Textile Network will then visit MDK in Poland for Sileziany in October 2009 with the aim of organising workshops for young people in Poland and another skills exchange workshop.

Through these skills exchanges the two groups will build a body of work that they hope will be an exhibition in 2010 in Cobh and Poland.
EXHIBITION RUNS UNTIL SUNDAY NOVEMBER 16 - SEE GALLERY HOURS TO THE LEFT OF THIS SITE......

A Day of Music in Aid of Sirius Arts Centre - Saturday 18 October

SIRIUS ARTS CENTRE
Presents
COBH MUSIC AND SONG MARATHON
In aid of Sirius Arts Centre
Saturday 18 October 10am – 5pm
In the Promenade, Cobh Town Centre

Like many community organisations, Sirius Arts Centre is feeling the pinch of the changing economic climate. We have the opportunities ahead of us that will make our listed heritage building more accessible to the public and allow us to develop projects, creating partnerships between many different community organisations with us in the year ahead, providing interesting and engaging activities for young people and our local community in Cobh and East Cork. But we need your help!

We have a challenging year ahead of us in order to realise and expand our potential. In order to meet our financial targets, Sirius Arts Centre will organise a number of major fundraisers from now and into the year ahead, continuing to bring interesting and engaging arts and cultural activities through our creative programming.

To kick off our efforts for much needed fundraising, the staff of Sirius are organising the Cobh Music and Song Marathon as part of our annual flag-day collection illustrating the opportunities we can provide the local community through engagement in the arts.

A host of local some of the finest singer songwriters from Cobh and beyond will perform in the bandstand in Kennedy Park on Saturday 18 October from 10AM – 5PM, along with many free activities for young people, including face painting and other arts and craft events.

We invite you to come down and celebrate a fabulous collection of local musical talent and colourful events with us! Throughout the day volunteers will be collecting much needed funds to assist Sirius Arts Centre in all its future programmes and running costs.

Bands performing on the day include:
Pete Courtney, Sarah Horgan, Lynda Cullen, The Banter Band, Suede Halo, Feed Back, Luasca, Annie and Isaac, Sian Brown, Kevin & Niamh Murphy, Yvonne O’Grady, Andy Wilson and DJ Ruadhri Aherne.

MORE DETAILS TO FOLLOW!!!

If you’d like to help or would like to make a donation in advance please contact our offices at

021 481 3790 or via email at: cobharts@iol.ie
Special thanks to Cobh and Harbour Chamber of Commerce.

Sirius Arts Centre presents an Evening with Brendan and Declan Murphy from the 4 of Us.

Saturday 11 November 8pm (Doors 7:45) - Tickets €15
For more information contact Sirius Arts Centre at information listed left

Formed in Newry in the late 1980s by brothers Brendan, Declan and Paul Murphy, The 4 Of Us appeared out of nowhere with the huge radio hit Mary taken from their debut album Songs For the Tempted in 1989, which helped them sweep the boards at the following year’s Hot Press awards. The slick commercial gloss of Mary belied the fact that it was a grim little snapshot of a deeply flawed relationship. The gimlet-eyed observations of Brendan Murphy’s lyrics demonstrated that this was a band who were always going to do it their own way.

Wary of the transient nature of pop, the band’s follow-up Man Alive in 1992 was a more rock driven album, featuring She Hits Me, a top 30 hit in the UK. The RTE Guide enthused ‘It's brash, fast, catchy, dangerous and covered in sin, lust and anything else The 4 Of Us can get their hands on’, and it was nominated in Q magazine’s Top 50 Albums of that year.

The band then retreated into the studio where they spent three years working on their next record, only to do what most bands would consider unthinkable. Perfectionists to the core, they looked at the results and decided it just wasn’t good enough, tore up the blueprints and started over again.

At this point The 4 Of Us effectively became Brendan and Declan, as brother Paul left to pursue a more normal existence. Knuckling down to the task at hand, the band saw their perfectionist streak pay off when they emerged with 1999’s Classified Personal, a masterful record peopled by characters who went on blind dates, made a final stab at patching things up, promised not to mess up again and ultimately held it together. It was a record that saw the band emerge from the studio fitter, older and wiser and it raised the bar even higher for them.

In 2003’s Heaven & Earth the focus becomes more universal, with songs that hint at the turmoil that was to accompany 9/11. Sitting alongside the euphoria of U Make Me Feel and the unsteady nerviness of Breakdown or No Guarantees, the massive radio hit Sunlight reminded everyone that the Murphys can write world-class songs.

Again unwilling to simply repeat a formula, the band set to work on the album that would eventually become Fingerprints. Having spent a good deal of the previous three years co-writing with a very varied set of collaborators, Brendan knew that there would never be a better opportunity to deliver a great record, and from the chiming bouzoukis of What’s To Come to the shimmering strings of Flesh and Bone, this album combines the band’s strongest ever material with its most assured performances.

For band news and information check out:
http://www.the4ofus.com/ and
www.myspace.com/thefourofus

Sirius Arts Centre Presents Cork Harbour Project, Beyond the Myths. Opening Saturday 13 September

Exhibition & Public Seminar 13th September 2008

Cork Harbour Project, Beyond the Myths is a dynamic exhibition including a public seminar, a site specific installation, walking tour and schools project was developed through a series of interactive meetings and workshops/laboratories supported by Sirius Arts Centre’s artist in residence programme. International and local artists, community groups, experts in natural history and representatives from the local authority were brought together with the aim of raising awareness about this unique Irish natural habitat. Cork Harbour Beyond the Myths is the first phase of projects drawn from these laboratories. The resulting projects are a reflection of unique partnerships formed during the 2007 laboratories.

Cork Harbour is in the process of change, a vital natural resource which offers a remarkable opportunity for investigation. The size and unique mixture of environments provide a perfect source to develop a project of this type. The natural places of Cork Harbour hold great significance for the people of Cork as well as visitors from beyond the boundaries of Cork in terms of industry, agriculture, fishing and other maritime enterprise, and leisure activities.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seminar Saturday 13th September / 2-5.30pm
Sirius Arts Centre, Cobh, Co. Cork €5 (booking required)

On Saturday 13th September at 2pm, Sirius will hold a seminar exploring how the art work in this resulting exhibition evolved and how unique partnerships created through this project affected the artists and experts involved.

The seminar, hosted by Sarah Iremonger, will involve case studies from some of the lab participants including Lieutenant Commander Cormac Rynne from Haulbowline Naval Base and exhibiting artists, Martin Sims from Australia and Danny McCarthy from Cork. Community engagement activities evolving from the Harbour Project by Cork Greenmap and Middleton artists, John McHarg & Ned Cotter with Windy Lane Puppet Theatre will also give presentations. Allan Giddy will discuss his Sonic Wells installation in Cobh followed by an open public discussion.

For more information contact Sarah Iremonger at:
Tel: 00353 (0)21 4813790
email: cobharts@iol.ie
www.siriusartscentre.ie

Sonic Wells Site Specific Installation Opening 13 September 8:30pm Ryan’s Pub, Casement Square

Wells, water holes, hot springs and billabongs were until recently central meeting points for communities worldwide. For this installation Australian artist, Allen Giddy will construct two sonic wells: one in Cobh, County Cork, Ireland and the other in Sydney, Australia, creating a virtual hole (12,720km long) through the earth connecting Ireland with Australia.

Each well will collect ambient sounds which, transmitted live, will be emitted from its sister well. Thus for instance, people near the well in Cobh will hear live audio from its sister well in Sydney and vice versa!

The aim of this project is to create a contemporary gathering place that mirrors both the history of wells and expand its potential by connecting geographically separate but related communities through collective soundscapes. An additional aim is to highlight the immigration patterns between Ireland and Australia and its special significance to Cobh.

Each well will be relatively small and will be constructed to compliment the local architecture (see simulated site images below) the wells will integrate with the aesthetics of each site whilst incorporating a minimal aesthetic reference to the site of the sister well. The aesthetic of the wells is currently being determined through consultation with local stone masons and will be designed to complement and merge with the overall site aesthetic.

Installation runs until 5 October

Sirius Arts Centre Travels to China Pingyao International Photography Festival with Three Irish Photographers.

Peggy Sue Amison, Director of Sirius Arts Centre in Cobh, County Cork, has been invited by China Pingyao International Photography Festival (http://www.pipphoto.com/) and the European Photography Festival Union (http://www.festivalunion.com/) to present the work of three Irish Photographers at this prestigious festival taking place from 19 – 26 September. Additional support from Culture Ireland has helped to make this presentation of Irish photography in China possible.

Founded in 2001, the China Pingyao International Photography Festival is the world’s largest photography exhibition. Past editions of this festival have hosted many well known contemporary photographers such as Robert Frank, Annie Leibowitz and Don McCullen.
Exhibited at the festival will be works by three Irish photographers: David Farrell, Mark Curran and Seán Hillen. This will be the first exhibition of their works in China.

In addition, Peggy will give a presentation about photography in Ireland and will discuss issues affecting international curators of photography in a one day workshop along with representatives from China, England, Greece, Finland, Bratislava, Poland and other members of the European Photo Festival Union..

Exhibited at this year’s festival will be selected works of photomontages by Seán Hillen, images from Mark Curran’s well known projects including “The Breathing Factory ”and “Southern Cross” and a selection of David Farrell’s images from works “Innocent Landscapes” and “Né Vicino Né Lontano. A Lugo”.

In addition to the exhibition of Irish work, Ms. Amison has also curated a slide presentation in partnership with the European Photography Festival Union featuring work by International artists who have participated in the Artist in Residency Programme at Sirius Arts Centre. The presentation will include works from, “Tide” by South African photograph Michelle Sank, works from a documentary project in progress on fishing by French photographer Gilles Perrin and additional images by David Farrell.

Peggy Sue Amison, Artistic Director of Sirius Arts Centre said, “I am really pleased to be invited to promote Irish photographers to a whole new audience. It’s a great opportunity both for the Irish photographers and for Sirius Arts Centre.”

Travelling to China with Peggy Amison will be artist Séan Hillen. For more information on the artists please visit their websites at:

Séan Hillen: http://www.seanhillen.com/

David Farrell: http://www.davidfarrell.org/

Mark Curran: http://www.belfastexposed.org/exhibitions/index.php?exhibition=2&year=2006&show=past

For more information contact Sirius Arts Centre at +353 21 481 3790

Upcoming music concerts at Sirius Arts Centre in September, October and November

Monday 8 September 8pm (doors 7:45pm)
Colm Mac Con Iomaire
fiddle player from the Frames will perform for one night only celebrating the release of his debut album "The Hare's Corner (Cúinne An Ghiorria). Tickets €15

Tuesday 23 September 8pm (doors 7:45pm)

The National Chamber Choir / Director Paul Hillier
Singing Stories and Telling Songs
CHRISTCHURCH, RUSHBROOKE
Ireland's most Distinguished choral ensemble, with their new award winning artistic director, Paul Hillier, perform a dynamic programme with words and music by: John Cage, Philip Glass, Arvo Parte, Gertrude Stein, James Joyce and others. This is one evening not to be missed.
Tickets €18/€16 concession. Made possible with support by Cork County Council

Saturday 11 October 8pm (doors 7:45 pm)
An evening with Brendan and Declan Murphy from
The 4 of Us
An encore performance by this well known Irish duo.
Advanced booking reccommended!
Tickets €15

Friday 24 October 8pm (doors 7:45pm)

GUGGENHIEM GROTTO

promoting their eagerly awaited second release "Happy the Man", and following on massive praise for their first album. Guggenheim Grotto play a mix of pop, rock and folk.
Tickets €15

For more information or to book tickets contact Sirius at 021 481 3790

Marie Brett Exhibits "The Loan Bush" until Sunday 7 September at Sirius

A live Hawthorn Tree forms the centre piece for an exhibition in Sirius Arts centre in Cobh, by Bantry artist Marie Brett.

The artist has made a new collection of work combining oak and stainless steel, photography and a DVD, which explore tradition and folklore surrounding the native Hawthorn and pre-historic archaeological sites.

Marie said she was delighted to have an exhibition at Sirius and said of her artworks inspiration: “The Hawthorn, especially the lone bush, has always been regarded with a mixture of fear and respect. There are many stories of harm, even death, coming to those who interfere with a thorn tree. Likewise, the veneration of stones in the context of pilgrimage and patterns, still flourish. Private and public symbolic gestures of walking around, touching, scraping, kneeling, and leaving tokens on sacred stones are evident. I did months of research and investigation and built up a body of stories which helped inform the artwork”.

Marie is Irish descent, with her Mother coming from Mallow and her Dad from County Waterford. Both her parents were at the exhibition opening, as were many people from Cobh and Cork, where Marie is well known for her community arts projects. Sirius Director, Peggy Sue Amison says of the exhibitionsays of the exhibition:“Marie’s work connects her audience to something that is basically intrinsic in every culture – a universality of ritual and myth, a visual language of symbols, taking one beyond the verbal to a place of silence and imaginative contemplation”.

Marie Brett was awarded a Masters Degree with distinction in visual art from London University Goldsmith’s College. She lives and works in County Cork with her family, towards Bantry.

Contact Sirius for more information - gallery hours are as posted on this site.

Tide - an installation by Aileen Lambert opens at Sirius on Saturday 14 June with a special performance at 3pm

Sirius Arts Centre presents Aileen Lambert's most recent project
Tide - Video Installation, Sound and Video Works

Official Opening Saturday 14th June at 3pm Sirius Arts Centre Galleries With a performance of
One Mouthful of Water by the artist at the opening

Exhibition runs Saturday 14th June – Sunday 6th July

Following a short residency at Sirius earlier this year, Lambert presents a show including sound and video works and featuring a new video installation, Tide in the Centre Gallery. This new work was developed in response to the unique aspect of Sirius Arts Centre and it's relationship to the sea.

Tide is defined as "a point or portion of time" or "the rise and fall of the sea". Each new tide carries with it the promise of erasing a previous impression and the potential of something new and unknown. This work investigates the body's relationship with time in relation to the changing landscape, and through the use of sound explores feelings of loss and longing so often associated with the sea.

The West Gallery will feature a number of video and sound works in which the artist mediates her encounters with the environment. Performative gestures varying from short determined actions to extended periods of stillness are re-presented by employing a variety of recording and editing devices. Much of the Lambert's work is concerned with a futile attempt to preserve something which is intangible, as she uses metaphors such as the voice, breath and shadow to explore archetypal notions of life and death and the passing of time.

Aileen Lambert - Biography
Lambert's practice spans video, performance and sound work, as well as participatory public art projects. Aileen graduated from LSAD, Limerick in 1997 with a degree in Fine Art was awarded an MA in Visual Arts Practice from DLIADT in January 2007. She recently presented a solo show entitled Come and Gone, featuring video, sound and performance in Wexford Arts Centre in January/February 2008. Group shows include 7000IS, (Egilsstadir, Iceland), Anti Festival of Contemporary Art (Kuopio, Finland), Tract (Cornwall, England), EV+A (Limerick), Tulca (Galway), Visual Deflections (London), Castle of Imagination (Poland) and SWGC, (Newfoundland). Aileen was in receipt of a Bursary from The Arts Council of Ireland in June 2007, and Wexford County Council in June 2008. Public art projects include The Soft Edge, which was commissioned by Wexford County Council and culminated in a publication launch in January '08. She is currently working on a public art commission for Fingal County Council and is developing new work for Sculpture at Kells, August 2008, and Triskel Arts Centre, Cork, in April 2009.

Composer, musician and visual artist, Charlotte Hug in Residence at Sirius

Charlotte Hug, composer, musician and visual artist, lives in Zurich and travells extensively. She graduated in Visual Arts and Music, from London, Bern, Zurich & Berlin, and has received several awards, including "artist in residence" in London, Paris, Cork, Berlin and now in Cobh for the month of June.

Charlotte is well known for her spatial scores and performances in unusual places around the world. Charlotte tries to maximize amplification of playing techniques through the use of these alternative spaces. She has, among others, developed the "softbow" and specializes in mixing the sounds of viola and voice.

In addition to exhibitions, she performs as a soloist playing her own compositions at important international festivals in Europe, USA and Canada. ( for more inforamtion visit http://www.charlottehug.ch). Sarah Iremonger, Artist in Residence Co-ordinator took a few moments out to find-out more about Charlotte and her aspirations for her residency.

Sarah - Can you tell us a bit about what you've been working on recently and your plans during your residency at Sirius?

Charlotte - I was in the area during Cork Capital of Culture 2005, at that time I did an installation and performance for the Soundworks Festival as part of Arttrail. The high and low tide near the Dockyard in Rusbrookewere was inspiring for me. At low tide I was standing on the slipway... it made me think of "anderwelten" (the Celtic discription for otherworlds).

At that time I was looking for special places allover Europe which were under the earth, or under the water, or in between. Since then I played in the Rhone Glacier in Switzerland and the house of detention, a prison from the 16th century which was a air raid shelter during the second worldwar in London. I also performed in a half destroyed bunker in Berlin and in the subterranean hot springs in the cellar of a former luxury hotel of the 18th century in Switzerland.

I am currently working with Swiss TV to make a documentary film about this project, "Anderwelten". The filmmaker Alberto Venzago and his cameraman will come at the end of my residency to the Sirius Art Centre and film my work here in Ireland. My focus this year is "Anderwelten" and my time at Sirius provides me with an opportunity to continue my work on this project. I have plans for a future exhibition, including an installation and a performance which will be shown at the Kunstkeller Bern in Switzerland and at the Swissnex in San Francisco this autum.Currently I am the soloist (viola & voice) in the piece "Oedipus on Kolonos" from Sophokles /director Jossi Wieler, where I will play the psyche of Oedipus at the Münchner Kammerspiele.

For more information on Charlotte Hug visit her website at: www.charlottehug.ch

Look Closer Closer Look Opening Thurs 15 May 7pm

An exhibition of art work by the adult art, craft & design students of Cobh Community College. The opening will take place at 7pm on Thursday 15 May by Simon Knowles, local artist and art historian at UCC and Crawford Art College - all are welcome. This is an excellent opportunity to purchase original art at affordable prices.

Exhibition runs until Sunday 1 June.

Lisa Hannigan to Play Sirius Arts Centre Sunday 8 June 8pm

Sirius Arts Centre announces an evening with Lisa Hannigan!

As most will know Lisa Hannigan, is the talented young singer/songwriter from Dublin, famous for her long-term collaboration with Damien Rice. Lisa is now branching out as a soloist in her own right after parting ways with Rice in March 2007.

In 2001 Lisa began singing as a lead vocalist for Rice's music at a concert in the Temple Bar Music Centre, Dublin and appeared on his debut album "O" . Hannigan has also contributed to Rice's "9" album and on songs for the charity album, "The Cake Sale". She has also performed along with other top musicians including Snow Patrol and The Frames.

Tickets for this event will go quickly so advanced booking is strongly advised. Hear some of Lisa's latest tracks at:www.myspace.com/lisahannigan or at Lisa Hannigan Redefined.

To book tickets visit see the contact information to the left of this page.

Cobh Maritime Song Festival Ready to Set Sail on 30 May - 1 June!!

The Maritime Festival is an exciting international event that invites maritime musicians from Ireland and abroad. This year the festival will invite performers from Ireland, Poland, England, America and France. Return artists include Nordet from France, Johnny Collins and Jimmy Mageean from England and Perly i Lotry from Poland.

Additionally we have a great line up of Irish musicians including Johnny Moynihan with his band Moonshine, Patrick Street with Andy Irvine and a special performance with Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill.

Also on the bill over the weekend with be Four 'N'Aft from Liverpool and the Johnson Girls from America. Weekend passes for the evening events are available or you can buy tickets for each individual concert.

On Sunday St Colman's Pipe band will host the South of Ireland Pipe band compeition with over 300 pipers from around Ireland and a farmer's market will be on the streets of Cobh selling unique original local products.

This is a family friendly event, for more information you can visit the OFFICIAL WEBSITE at http://www.cobhmaritimesongfestival.com/ or contact Sirius at cobharts@iol.ie

Sirius Announces an evening with Eleanor McEvoy - Saturday 17 May 8pm

Sirius Arts Centre is pleased to announce a return visit from one of Ireland's best female singer songwriters.

Eleanor McEvoy

on Saturday 17 May 8pm - tickets are €20 and can be purchased by contacting Sirius Arts Centre at the addresses listed to the left side of this weblog.

In a world where the word star and the gift of talent are often devalued, Eleanor McEvoy is neither an overnight success, nor a four week wonder. A musician and songwriter of note, possessing all of the qualities that go to make up the complete artist.

Eleanor graduated from Trinity and was accepted into the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland where she worked four years before finally taking the plunge to concentrate on her passion for songwriting.

After a long hard slog, the girl who spent the year of 1988 busking in Union Square, New York had come a long way, a route that took her through the disciplines of classical music, Irish traditional music and contemporary music to a point where she finally found success in 1992.
It happened when one of her songs "Only a Woman's Heart" inspired the title for, and appeared on, the "A Woman's Heart" anthology album. It has since gone on to become the best selling album in Irish history, staying in the Irish Top 10 for over a year.

Since then Eleanor has gone on to become an artist and performer known throughout the world. Her critically acclaimed canon of work spans six albums, several singles and appearances on numerous compilation albums and is today recognised as Ireland's most successful female singer songwriter having enjoyed personal chart success and numerous cover versions of her songs. (Emmylou Harris, Mary Black, Phil Coulter, amongst others). Her song "All I Have" features in the lastest series of the HBO cult series "Six Feet Under"

Don't miss this chance to see Eleanor in the intimate surroundings of the West Gallery. This is her first return appearance since she headlined the 2006 Cobh Maritime Song Festival in the Heritage Centre.

Artist in Residence for April & May - Daniel Heer

Daniel Heer is currently in residence at Sirius Arts Centre. A visual artist working at the moment as a designer, Daniel is also the author of documentaries and videos, examining national and cultural stereotypes. Daniel was born in Lucerne Switzerland in 1977. He lives and works in Berlin.

This is Daniel's second residency at Sirius he is currently continuing on work looking traditions of lacemaking and design. Daniel will be in residency until 24 May.

Sarah Iremonger, Artist in Residence Co-ordinator took a few moments out to get more information about Danie and his asperations for his residency.

Sarah - Can you tell us a bit about what you're working on currently?

Daniel - My current work at the Sirius is called SIGNALS, and is influenced by the rise and the fall of the tide. The idea behind this work is to explore the restoration of Sirius Arts Centre and to use my residency as an opportunity to create a construction artwork "kunst am bau - Project" looking at the idea of restoration in a heritage buiding.

Signals is designed to be integrated with the renovation of the skylights in the Centre Gallery and the architecture of the building. Black louvered blinds are proposed to cover the 2 sky-lights , blocking out and revealing the day light. The blinds would open and close slowly at intervals of every 6 hours. I would invision their movements to be synchronized with the rhythm of the sea.The louvered blinds would be used as a navigation between the sea and the sky.

SI - What other projects are you working on at the moment?

DH - I just finished a limited edition of leather-bags and am working on a new collection of these bags.

SI - What do you hope to achieve at Sirius and where will it take you?

DH - The Sirius Arts Centre is for me a kind of retreat after being in Dublin. I compare the urban experience of the Temple Bar Studios in Dublin with the quiet of the apartment studio at the Sirius Arts Centre in Cobh. In both places you can easily become inspired and stimulated because these places bring you to yourself in different ways.

Equinox to Play the Music of Thelonious Monk at Sirius - Thursday, 1 May 8pmTickets €15

The music of Thelonious Monk presents a unique challenge and unique rewards to jazz musicians. His is a body of work that appeals to swing musicians, be-boppers, modern jazz players, and the avant-garde alike. The wide-ranging appeal and relevance of Monk’s music is something that communicates to audiences as well as players. The idea for a project of all Monk music came about through a desire by the members of Equinox to penetrate the complexity and mystery of Monk’s music. This is not music to be dabbled in, and it is not something that reveals its riches without serious study. Quoting Pianist Barry Harris “You don’t necessarily just get up and play Monk. Sonny Rollins practiced Monk, Coltrane practiced Monk.”

Equinox is based in The Netherlands, where all the band members have made their home. All of the members of the quartet are steeped in the jazz tradition, which continually informs their search for personal avenues of expression in improvisation and composition. Among the band’s strengths is a vast and wide ranging repertoire that includes originals by all band members, modern and classic jazz pieces, and choice American songbook standards. Equinox will be touring Ireland in April and May of 2008 in a project devoted to performing the music of the great composer and Pianist Thelonious Monk.

Equinox has existed as a working quartet since the fall of 2007, but with the exception of newcomer Davis, who moved to Holland in the summer of 2007, the group’s members have been playing together for a long time. Nicholas and Daly originally began working as a guitar/bass duo, but have been performing together in a great variety of contexts for the past four years, both in Holland and abroad.

This is a rare opportunity to see such exceptional musicians paying tribute to a legend of jazz. This will be a very special night in the Sirius. To book tickets contact Sirius at: 021 481 3790 or via email at: cobharts@iol.ie Check out Equinox's My Space site by clicking HERE

Encore lecture with Jim Wilson Sold Out!

Jim Wilson's second lecture on his recent trip to the Antarctic Peninsula has sold out! Keep a look out in the future for more lectures on nature and wildlife. If you would like to be included on the email list for contacts regarding these specific lectures please contact Sirius at cobharts@iol.ie and we'll let you know as we organise more of these events.

If you have tickets for this lecture doors will be at 7:45 for a prompt start time at 8:00pm

DEADLINE FOR 2009 SIRIUS ARTIST RESIDENCIES AND EXHBITION APPLICATIONS 2 MAY 2008

The Curatoral Panel for Sirius Arts Centre will soon be planning exhibitions and residencies for our 2009 Programme of Events.

There are two ways artists are chosen for residencies and exhibitions at Sirius:
1) Artists from Ireland and abroad are invited by the curatorial panel directly
2) Artists may submit an application to be considered for a residency at Sirius.

Applications are considered for both single artists or groups of artists who wish to share the residency. The term of residence at Sirius ranges from 1 - 3 months with the average residency lasting approximately 4 - 6 weeks.

APPLICATION INFORMATION:
There is no formal application form needed. If you wish to apply for a residency or exhibition at Sirius Arts Centre you must submit the following information:

* An up to date CV with your past exhibition information.
* 10 Images or other appropriate samples of your work (slides, CD's or small prints can be accepted). Make sure that CD's/DVD's can be viewed on all formats.
* A self addressed stamped envelope with sufficient postage to return your work to you
(If you don't send us return postage we will not return your work).

For residency applications please also includ a written proposal which clearly states the following:

* What you hope to achieve during your residency,
* The length of residency you're interested in and preferred time of year.
* Any interests you may have on developing an exhibition or project with Sirius.
* Does your work have any pertinent links to Ireland or Cobh?
* Have you an interest in linking with the local community during your stay?

All applications will be judged by the curatorial panel and applicants will be notified as soon as possible.

You can send applications via mail (please include return post for have your work returned to you) to:

Sirius Arts Centre
The Old Yacht Club
Cobh, County Cork
Ireland

The residency and exhibition programmes are made possible through the generous support of the Irish Arts Council and Cork County Council.

Tir Na Nóg Play Sirius Sat. 26 April 8pm (doors 7:45)

Leo O'Kelly and Sonny Condell perform together again in the Sirius for one night only. Tickets €17

Over two decades on, Mr. Condell and Mr. O'Kelly are still now at a loss to explain how or why Tir Na Nóg happened, yet somehow, somewhere the oddest of odd couples came together to create one of the greatest folk rock musical hybrids of startling ingenuity. It made them famous, if not rich, deposited them on some of the worlds biggest stages and effectively opened the way for a whole flood of Irish bands to follow. And this is your chance to see them in the intimate setting of the Sirius.... contacts for tickets can be found to the left of this page. For more information on Tir Na Nóg visit Sonny Condell's Website

Encore Presentation of Lecture on Antarctica by Jim Wilson Thursday 24 April 8pm (doors 7:45pm).

Jim Wilson presents an encore of his lecture, "A Trip to the Antarctic Penisula" Tickets are €6/€4 Concession

Cobh native and well known naturalist, cinematographer and musician, Jim Wilson presents an audio/visual presentation about his trip to the Antarctic Penisula aboard the Marco Polo as expedition ornithologist. If you would like more information on Jim and his trip you might visit his weblog by clicking HERE

ADVANCED BOOKING IS RECCOMMENDED - the first night of this lecture sold out and many were disappointed when they couldn't get tickets...... just a word of warning. Contact Sirius at 021 481 3790 or via email at cobharts@iol.ie to book.

Sirius Arts Centre Blog begins

There is so much going on at Sirius Arts Centre in Cobh, County Cork Ireland that we thought it was time to create our own blog. In this space we can give you more detailed information on upcoming events and post interviews with our Exhibiting Artists and Artists in Residence along with other goings-on in the artistic communities of Cobh and Cork.

In April we exhibited "Forsaken" by Lana Slezic in commemoration of International Women's Day 2008. Ms. Slezic gave a tour of her exhibition on opening night, it was a rare opportunity to hear first hand about this award winning photographer's experiences while living in Afghanistan for 2 years.

Lana Slezic was awarded third prize in Portrait/Stories of the World Press Award 2008 for another body of work she completed on Women in Afghanistan.

Thursday, 10 April at 7:00pm we open "Tidal" a new exhibition by South African photographer, based in England, Michelle Sank (All are welcome to attend).

Michelle's exhibition was created in Cobh during her residency at Sirius in 2007. The photographs include images of the young people she met at the water's edge near Cork Harbour and also through her associations with Cobh Youth Services and other youth groups in the area. The photographs reveal not only the personalities of some of our local young people, but also illustrate how other cultures have recently moved into Ireland and the Cobh/Cork Area.

Michelle Sank won third prize in the National Portrait Gallery Prize in 2007 . Her work is also currently being exhibited in the "Discoveries of the Meeting Place" exhibition at Fotofest in the United States. Fotofest, based in Houston Texas is one of the most prestigious Bi-Annual photography events in America. Michelle's most recent publication, "Becomming" is available from Belfast Exposed Gallery.

Last Friday night we hosted a sold out lecture by local Natural Historian, Jim Wilson. Jim completed a 6-week trip on the cruise liner Marco Polo in Dec 07/Jan 08 as the Expedition Ornithologist. This lecture was so popular that he has agreed to schedule another date with Sirius in the near future. If you would like to be informed when this next lecture will take place please visit Sirius Arts Centre's website or send an email to: cobharts@iol.ie. Aside from Jim's blog site he also maintains another website at: www.irishwildlife.net

In Februrary 08 we hosted Irish Installation artist and musician, Aileen Lambert in our residency programme. Aileen was on a research and development visit gathering information for a new exhibition which will be held in the Sirius Arts Centre later this year.

In March and April we hosted West Cork based video artist, David Ian Bickley. David was also working on research for future exhibitions and while at Sirius had two video installations at St. Finbar's Cathedral in Cork City, "Golgatha" and "Calvary" as part of Holy Week in the Cathedral.

More updates soon on music and other events at Sirius Arts Centre. We hope you will come check back to this site frequently for information on our upcoming events and details on the artists we are engaging with. Remember you can always send us feedback at cobharts@iol.ie

Best wishes

Peggy Sue Amison

Director

Sirius Arts Centre