Exhibition and wood engraving printmaking demonstration

Susan Mannion was awarded an artist residency with exhibition at Thoor Ballylee in 2024. During the residency Susan worked in the studio at the base of Yeats’s tower. The tower cast shadows upon the studio and the sound of the stream outside the window that wound around the base of the tower were visual and audio cues for creating new artwork.

The title for this exhibition, ‘In The Shadow of The Tower’, is both a physical interpretation and a reference to the people who lived in the shadow of WB Yeats, particularly the gifted women in his life, especially, George Yeats his wife and his sisters Elizabeth and Lily Yeats at Cuala Press.

Susan notes: “As Yeats declared the tower his symbol, taking inspiration from that building and the surrounding landscape, I looked for symbolism of the women in his life in the softer elements, in the reflective surface of the river at the base of the tower and the beech trees that I could see from the studio windows. Inspired by these images, I have created wood engraving handmade prints and polaroid emulsion lifts especially for this exhibition.”

The exhibition is part of Heritage Week celebrations and the artist will be present to discuss and demonstrate wood engraving on Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 August throughout the day. The exhibition is free, everyone welcome.