Connected Horizons Programme: Organisations | Show & Tell Galway | Kerry | Meath | Offaly | Tyrone (3 Mar)

Call for Participants: Connected Horizons Programme

Are you an artist based in Galway, Kerry, Meath, Offaly or Tyrone? Join VAI’s Connected Horizons Programme to connect with fellow artists, receive constructive feedback, and engage with leading arts organisations.

Programme Overview

• Session 1: Show & Tell with Organisations (Tuesday 3rd March, Online)Meet key arts organisations (126 Artist-Run Gallery & Studios, Siamsa Tíre, Solstice Art Centre, Esker Arts, Strule Arts Centre)
• Session 2: Online Peer Critique (Tuesday 10th March, Online)A structured, moderated critique session for in-depth feedback.
• Session 3: In-Person Clinics & Networking (Wednesday 25th March, VAI Dublin)Meet peers and facilitators for networking and one-on-one clinics. Limited to 20 places, first come, first served.

Event 1: Show & Tell with Organisations (Tuesday 3rd March, Online)

This is the first event in this round of the Connected Horizons Programme, designed to connect artists across Galway, Kerry, Meath, Offaly and Tyrone. This session introduces key arts organisations ((Galway, Kerry, Meath, Offaly, Strule Arts Centre), offering insights into opportunities and support available. Artists will then have the chance to present their work in a supportive environment, receiving input from organisations and fellow participants.

Organisations

126 Artist-Run Gallery & Studios

Established in 2005, 126 Artist-Run Gallery is an artist-led, not for profit organisation, integral to the visual arts ecology and cultural landscape of Galway, Ireland. The gallery is run voluntarily by a Board of Directors, professional artists & curators and is supported by Galway City Council, The Arts Council of Ireland, and Creative Ireland.

126’s mission is to deliver high-quality professional contemporary exhibitions and cultural programming which is free and open to all. This includes artist talks/lectures, workshops, residencies, studio spaces and upskilling opportunities for Galway.

126 is dedicated to supporting artists at all stages of career with a focus on emerging contemporary practices & partnerships. This is achieved by maintaining a centrally located space which is welcoming and open for all to visit and join. 126 is committed to the development of paid opportunities for artists, the fostering of partnerships locally and nationally and to advancing Galway’s cultural capacity.

126 was founded on a democratic structure, in which power flows from the membership to the Board of Directors. The Board promotes the ideology of the membership, as laid out in the organisation’s aims, through the activities of 126. The Board directly represents the membership, and it is on the basis of this relationship that the projected success and longevity of 126 is based. Membership provides a platform for individuals to connect with a larger network of professional artists. There are around 200 members at any given time.

Jamie Bigley

Jamie Bigley is a graduate of the MA in Drama & Theatre Studies (2018/2019) from the University of Galway. Their experience includes administrative and curational roles with Arts Care (2017-2018), an arts in health and social care organisation based in Belfast as well as co-ordinating the VISTA (previously VAIP) programme for Galway International Arts Festival (2023-2025). They are a member of the Board of Co-directors for 126 Artist-Run Gallery & Studios since 2025, and are a contributing programmer for Galway Theatre Festival (2023-2026). 

Beyond their experience within arts organisations, Jamie also operates as a theatre and performance artist, often collaborating with Galway-based performance art collective, Fite Fuaite. They approach performance from a research perspective, with a particular focus on arts practice in/as health and wellbeing as a central aspect. Through a practice-as-research approach, Jamie seeks to extend conversations between theoretical thought and the body as a site of knowledge. In particular, their performance work seeks to apply queer theory perspectives to questions around wellbeing practices in the contemporary moment. 

Siamsa Tíre

Siamsa Tíre is an iconic theatre and arts centre situated in the heart of Tralee County Kerry. This vibrant hub of traditional and contemporary arts celebrates over 50 years of dedication to sustaining, exploring and sharing the arts of Ireland past, present and future. All year round, its’ diverse and interactive programme of Ireland’s leading entertainment, arts workshops and visual arts gallery ensures visitors enjoy an authentic Irish cultural experience.

Angela Ryan Whyte

Angela Ryan Whyte is CEO of Siamsa Tíre Theatre & Arts Centre, where she provides strategic and artistic leadership to a multidisciplinary organisation encompassing theatre, visual arts, and creative learning. She leads Siamsa Tíre as both a producing venue and a civic cultural institution, with a strong focus on contemporary practice, artist-centred development, and public engagement.

She holds an Honours MA in Drama & Theatre Studies from NUI Galway and has built a career across creative producing, curatorial development, and public-sector arts management, including work within local authority arts services supporting visual arts and community arts programmes. Angela is the founder of Scripts – Ireland’s Playwriting Festival, through which she has championed new work and emerging voices for over a decade. Her practice is grounded in collaboration, cultural advocacy, and the creation of platforms for critically engaged, socially responsive art.

Solstice Arts Centre

Solstice Arts Centre is an award winning, multi-disciplinary arts venue located in Navan County Meath. Home to a range of spaces suitable for all types of artistic practice, Solstice programmes and commission’s performance, exhibitions, workshops, conferences, and off-site projects. Solstice presents local, national and international events in visual art, theatre, music, dance and film, while supporting professional artists in associated artist programmes with space, financial resources, and expertise to develop and explore their practice. Solstice is primarily funded by Meath County Council, the Arts Council of Ireland and is a member of Meath County Council Cultural committee. The Swift Cultural Centre is a sister venue and theatre for Solstice Arts Centre in Navan. Opened in June 2023, Solstice collaborates with Trim Library to provide a diverse and enriching community engagement, exhibition, and performance programme in Trim.

Ruth Hogan

Ruth Hogan is an Irish creative producer, curator and writer. She has almost twenty years’ experience of working with many of the Uk’s leading blue-chip art galleries and internationally renowned contemporary artists. She has previously held roles at White Cube, Lisson Gallery and Simon Lee Gallery and worked with many acclaimed artists such as Yinka Shonibare and Sonia Boyce. With an established international network, she has an extensive track record in exhibition delivery, curation and mentorship. She holds a MA in Curating Contemporary Art from Royal College of Art, London.

Deirdre Rogers

Deirdre Rogers is a visual artist and educator with 20 years of artistic and creative experience. Since October 2019, she is the Visual Arts Learning & Public Engagement Coordinator at Solstice/Swift developing an inclusive, interactive learning programme in conjunction with our extensive national and international exhibition programme. Managing additional off-site projects such as Take Me to the River (2024-26) ensures rich participant-led interactions and learnings using a diverse range of creative arts and scientific processes within our community.

Previous roles include Creative Director of ReCreate (2014-19), and Regional Coordinator for the Design Crafts Council of Ireland CraftED programme (2012 -15). Working from a home-studio, her glasswork has been exhibited worldwide. Holding the position of Chair of the Contemporary Glass Society of Ireland for 10 years in mid-1990’s, publications include ‘Heads Up’ (2017) and ‘All Heads Together’ (2018), a resource for artists and teachers working with children with additional needs in partnership with Head of Education, Dr Carmel O’Sullivan, Trinity College, Dublin.

Esker Arts

Esker Arts is a state-of-the-art visual, performance and community arts centre in Tullamore Co. Offaly. The centre is committed to a wide range of diverse arts programming and activity for local and wider communities to engage with. Esker Arts host visual art exhibitions, theatre, film, workshops and much more.

Sean Walshe

Sean Walsh is the Artistic Director of Esker Arts in Tullamore, Co. Offaly. Sean is originally from Belmullet, Co. Mayo, with a background in Philosophy and Art History. Sean has vast experience operating Arts Centres, previously serving as Director of Ballina Arts Centre for over 15 years, Assistant Arts Officer in Mayo County Council, and Co-ordinator for Meitheal Mhaigheo Erris Community Arts. Sean is also a widely published freelance arts journalist for well known magazines such as Irish Music Magazine and Hot Press, a keen painter, and an avid film fan with a particular love for arthouse film.

Strule Arts Centre

Who Can Join?

• Artists in any discipline based in the six listed counties.
• Cost: €15 across all three dates for artists based in Galway, Kerry, Meath, Offaly and Tyrone. (€5 per session)
• If you would like to present at the show and tell – complete the section of the form to indicate your interest. There is an artists fee of €50 for those selected. Spaces will be allocated on a first come, first served basis.

How to Register

Sign up via the VAI website.

Further Connected Horizons programmes for other counties will be announced soon.

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