ARTS OFFICE UPDATES

Culture Night Funding Opportunity

Cork County Council Arts Office invites arts organisations, community groups, artists and others to submit proposals for events that will be programmed as part of Culture Night taking place on September 19th this year. Cork County Culture Night will take place in the 17 Culture Night Hub Towns: Fermoy, Mitchelstown, Mallow, Charleville, Clonakilty, Skibbereen, Bantry, Bandon, Kinsale, Carrigaline, Passage West, Macroom, Baile Mhuirne, Midleton, Youghal, Cobh and Watergrasshill, as well as on the islands and in other locations around the county. The Arts Office will coordinate the Culture Night Cork County programme, promoting events, and providing marketing materials to organisations. Expressions of interest are sought for cultural events in various forms. Cork County Council will programme and promote eligible events. Cork County Council will support events that are seeking financial assistance where they meet the objectives as set out below, and where proposals are feasible within our budget.

Deadline to Submit: Friday 18th April 2025

Apply Here

Call for Creative Facilitators

The Cork County Council’s Arts Office is currently seeking creative facilitators in all artforms to join a panel of experienced practitioners. Expressions of interest to join this panel are invited from artists and creatives working in any medium including dance, fashion/textiles, design, architecture, Irish language arts, film or content creation. Artists on the panel could work on various Council led initiatives over the next two years, including the Council’s Creative Ireland programme, arts and health projects, and in community-based settings.

Deadline 5pm, March 2nd 2025.

Apply Here

Seachtain na Gaeilge 2025

Cork County Council has announced its Seachtain na Gaeilge 2025 programme, with Irish language events taking place in libraries, schools and online next month. Ireland’s largest annual celebration of our native language and culture, Seachtain na Gaeilge, runs from the 1st to the 17th of March. The programme in County Cork features storyteller Paddy O’Brien; children and young people’s author Áine Ní Ghlinn; contemporary irish music band Torcán; broadcaster Machan Mangan; musician and artist Ceara Conway; drag artist and musician Tadhg Griffin; and broadcaster and teacher Ray Cuddihy

Torcán

Torcán will play gigs in Gaelscoil Carrig Uí Leign and Gaelcholáiste Carrig Uí Leighinn as part of this year’s programme. Torcán are a new-style Trad band based in Cork. Led by Jason Turk, multi-medalist at the All Ireland Fleadh Cheoil, and his brother Robin. Joined by Seán Murphy and Brian Leach from Co. Cork and more recently All Ireland Bodhrán champion Karl Nesbitt, these talented musicians create a rich and complex sound from the piano accordion, whistle, saxophone, fiddle, bazouki, electric bass, guitar, and bodhrán.

Seachtain na Gaeilge with Áine Ní Ghlinn

Children and young people’s author Áine Ní Ghlinn will be visiting primary schools in Réidh na nDóirí, Béal Átha’n Ghaorthaidh, Baile Bhuirne, Cill na Martra, Cúil Aodha and Clondrohid. Áine’s latest book, Ag Buzzáil sa Gháirdín, will be released as part of World Book Day, where children across Ireland receive book tokens to purchase books.

Paddy O’Brien

Storyteller Paddy O’Brien will present events for schools and Ciorcail Cainte groups in Charleville, Bandon, Skibbereen, Youghal, Clonakilty, and Kinsale. Paddy, a former teacher, has been engaging audiences of all ages with stories in Irish and English. He is one of Cork County Council’s three storytellers in residence for the West Cork Islands, alongside Nuala Hayes and Simone Schuemmelfeder. New members are always welcome to Ciorcail Cainte; please contact your local branch for information.

Creative Careers in Irish

Post-Primary classes are invited to webinars that look at the variety of creative careers available to Irish speakers and those who are committed to promoting Irish traditional arts in a contemporary way. Torcán will be joined by musician and artist Ceara Conway, broadcaster and teacher Ray Cuddihy, musician and drag artist Tadhg Griffin and writer and broadcaster Manchán Magan.

More Information

Public Art Commission Opportunity

The OPW and Cork County Council under the State’s Per Cent for Arts Scheme are commissioning an artwork in Clonakilty as part of the Clonakilty Flood Relief Scheme. The Flood Relief Scheme is composed of several elements throughout the town and surrounding areas. Artists are invited to make proposals for artwork that is permanent or temporary, in any artform as identified by the Arts Act 2003. Proposals may consider possible physical sites, areas of interest, communities of interest or place, events or activities in the Clonakilty area that they wish to engage with. For outdoor works, the Croppy Park has been identified as a site.

Deadline is April 7th, 2025.

Apply Here

Projects Supported by Cork County Council

this/OUR

this/OUR is a community deep mapping project exploring Glenbower Wood through art, history, ecology and citizen science, led by artists Basil Al-Rawi, Chris Finnegan, Katie Nolan and Philip Ryan in partnership with Greywood Arts. Deep mapping is a transdisciplinary process that layers community voices, artistic interpretations, historical narratives, and ecological perspectives into a multidimensional narrative of place. This methodology, inspired by Jorge Luis Borges' short essay On Exactitude in Science, allows us to explore the tension between the precision in defining "THIS" place and the transient, relational nature of "OUR" connection to it.

To launch the project, a series of “artists in conversation with” events will take place over Thursday 6th and Friday 7th of March at Greywood Arts with the project's mentors, Jonski Millar, Dr. Kevin O’ Sullivan and Dr. Cathy Fitzgerald. These events are free and all are welcome to attend but booking is recommended.

More Information

Opportunities and Other Updates from the Sector

Funding opportunities opening in March from the Arts Council include the Agility Award, the International Residency Inititive and the Children and Young People's Art Residency. Review them here and here.
The Arts Council Creative Schools inititive is now open. Deadline May 8th. Successful schools will receive €4,000 to implement their Creative School plans over the school years 2025–26 and 2026–27. Apply here.
Applications are now open for the Age & Opportunity Creative Ageing Writing Bursary, which supports artists, writers, and arts workers in reflecting on the arts and ageing in Ireland. Deadline is March 12th. Full details here.
The Beltaine Festival is looking for volunteers to participate in their 30th anniversary edition. All ages and backgrounds are welcome to apply. Deadline 12th March. Full details here.
Rough Magic has opened applications for their artist development initiative, SEEDS. This year they are focusing on supporting emerging theatre collectives. Deadline is March 7th. Read more here.
The National Talent Academy for Film & Television Drama is seeking applications for Shadow Directors, Producers, Writers, Development Executives & Script Editors on upcoming projects. Learn more here.
The 13th annual Animation Dingle festival will be taking place on March 21st and 22nd. Read more here.
The animation FRAMEWORKS scheme will close on March 7th. It is a flagship scheme for the Irish animation sector which has produced global award-winning films to a consistently high standard. Apply here.
Flail is an exhibition by Cork based artist Debbie Godsell which presents a dynamic intersection of history, tradition, custom and ethno-cultural perspectives, all viewed through the lens of the harvest. It opened on the 22nd February at 2pm at Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre and will run until April 5th.