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Published: 11 Apr 2018

Meet the Panel: Siobhán Mulcahy, Clare Arts Officer & Sallyann Marron, Sallyann’s Bags

On Thursday 12 April a creative momentum project closing event takes place at Electric Galway, Ireland. This free lunchtime event will present some of the outputs of a creative momentum project. A major part of the event will be a panel discussion ‘Creativity & Peripherality in the West of Ireland – how does the picture look?’ featuring creative entrepreneurs and support agencies from across the West of Ireland.

Book your free place here.

Two of the panellists hail from County Clare. Siobhán Mulcahy has spent over 20 years working in the arts, the last of which have been as Arts Officer in Clare County Council. During this time she has developed venues, galleries and artist studios throughout the county, supporting those working in the Creative Industries in rural areas.

Siobhán will bring her perspective on the role of local authorities and the public sector in supporting the arts to the panel discussion, as well as her experience of working directly with artists and arts organisations.

Sallyann Marron established Sallyann’s Bags in a small sewing room overlooking Doo Lough and the Atlantic Ocean in West Clare, Ireland in 2014. Sallyann’s bags are individual creations, each lined with recycled jeans, making every bag unique.

The bags combine high quality oilcloth from around the world, and recycled denim gleaned from charity shops across the Mid-West of Ireland. The designs are simple, useful, practical and beautiful. Each bag is made to the highest quality standards to ensure it is long lasting and will not let its owner down.

In 2016 Sallyann participated in the first round of the Creative Steps 2.0 programme run by Lapland University of Applied Sciences. Through this process she was matched with Annika Konttaniemi who runs her own business Susivilla in Rovaniemi Lapland. After working together online through that process, Sallyann and Annika had a chance to meet in person during the Urkult Folk Festival in Mid-Sweden in August 2016.

It was here that Annika put Sallyann in contact with the Finnish Piirre Collective which led to the design of the first unique print for Sallyann’s bags – Meadow. The original print proved so popular that two more colour patterns for Meadow were developed.  And earlier this year they designed another unique ‘Sallyann’ print Fushia. Both Meadow and Fushia are inspired by the landscape of county Clare.

Sallyann will share her experience of starting and growing a West of Ireland based creative enterprise during the conference.

For more information and to book this free event, click here.

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