Tour De Art

 

10.30am: Assemble at The Bridge, Skibbereen

 

10.45: Short cycle towards Castletownshend to the beautiful colourful studio of Kate Toullis. (30 mins)

 

11.15: Tour of Kate's studio (45 mins)

 

12pm: Cycle past the vivd greens of Rineen waters and woods, up the hill for stunning views before decending down to rest the legs and park up the bike for lunch at John Kelly's fabulous sculpture garden and studio near Reen pier. 

 

1pm. After lunch, enjoy a guided tour of John's amazing sculpture garden with a chance to get out the sketch books and be inspired as John Kelly has been with views such as the 'High and Low'. (90 mins)

 

2.30pm: Cycle through the lanes to the picturesque fishing village of Union Hall. (30 mins)

 

 

3.15pm: Last leg of the jouney across the long bridge and in to the village of Leap. (20 mins)

 

3.40pm: Bikes are collected and transported back to Skibbereen and you hop on the bus (fares included in the fee)

 

4.15pm: Arrive back in Skibbereen 

 

John Kelly was born in 1965. His father, from Cork, and mother from Bristol, the family immigrated to Australia the same year. Due to his birth, heritage and circumstance John now holds three passports and therefore is an Englishman, an Australian and an Irishman. Kelly has lived in all three countries and for the past decade has resided in west Cork.

In 1985 Kelly obtained a Bachelor of Arts (Visual Arts Painting) from RMIT University, Melbourne, where he also completed his Masters of Arts in 1995. As a winner of the 1995 Anne & Gordon Samstag International Visual Arts Scholarship, he travelled to London to study as an Affiliate Student at the Slade School of Art from 1996 to 1997. In the UK he exhibited regularly with the prestigious Piccadilly Galleries in Cork Street, London and then Agnews Gallery, and has continued to do so with Merville Galleries.

As a painter, sculptor and printmaker Kelly engages across mediums and also writes, having written for Art Monthly (Australia & UK) and Circa magazine (Ireland).

In Australia Kelly is best known for his paintings and large sculptures of William Dobell’s cows, papier-mâché creations used during WWII in an attempt to confuse enemy aircraft as to the location of the Australian airbases. His sculptures of these cows have been exhibited on the Champs Elysées, Paris, in Les Champs de la Sculpture, 1999, Monte Carlo, in La Parade des Animaux, 2002, the MAMAC in France, The Hague, 2007, Glastonbury (2006 and 2007), Cork city 2011, and Melbourne Docklands (2001 to the present).

More recently, Kelly’s work has taken various turns and adventures that have seen him tackle contemporary issues – such as branding in contemporary culture, and museum politics – in places such as the Guangzhou Triennale, 2008, and the Göteborg Biennale, 2009. In 2005 Kelly’s work was commissioned by David Walsh (Museum of Old and New Art, MONA) in Hobart to create work for his Moo Brew beer labels. Kelly referenced the logo of the Australia Council for the Arts, who themselves had advocated a “branding the Arts” strategy. In what was a successful anti-branding branding campaign the award winning labels have become iconic Australian beer labels.

Kelly’s work is held in many museums and galleries in Australia and also the Guangdong Museum in China. His most recent exhibitions have been in Sydney (Look and Put) and London (British Art Fair).

Kate Toullis a graduate of Glasgow school of Art came to Ireland 37 years ago and worked as a stained glass artist and teacher. Her love of colour and appreciation of nature and music have influenced both her oil and water colour paintings.