Le Grá Craft Studio and Gallery opened on the 10th of October at the Claregalway Shopping Centre (behind Hughes’ Supervalu). “I love Irish craft and design.” says owner Ester Kiely. “I’m very lucky to have met so many creative people in Galway whose work is beautiful, well made and inspiring. Galway also has a great source of new, emerging talent graduating from GMIT and GTI every year. I wanted to provide all of these artisans with an outlet for their work and also to invite the community to learn new craft-skills in a friendly environment.”
“Galway boasts a wealth of artisans who are passionate about what they do. They are breathing new life into traditional crafts and combining these skills with experimentation to create contemporary, desirable, one-off objects.”
Le Grá Craft Studio and Gallery is a bright, spacious unit at the Claregalway Shopping Centre. There is ample parking with the fabulous Treat Café nearby for those who decide to have lunch after a morning of crafting or gift-shopping. The gallery has a range of ceramics, textiles, jewellery, prints, soaps and lots more for sale. With Christmas fast approaching it is the ideal place to find local, handmade, quality gifts.
Le Grá Craft Studio and Gallery is more than just a shop. It is also a place to learn craft skills from professional craft-makers. The workshop area allows up to ten participants in classes such as felt-making, print-making, patchwork, sewing skills, creative journalling, soft-toy-making and photography.
Community involvement is also an important factor at Le Grá Craft Studio and Gallery. Every Tuesday morning from 10.30 to 12.30 locals are invited to participate in ‘All Stitched Up’, a free drop-in event for up to ten people to share ideas and tips, be inspired by the work in the gallery orjust chat about their own projects over a cuppa.
Local groups (of up to ten people) are also invited to contact Le Grá Craft Studio and Gallery to book time to use the workshop for group projects.
For those interested in learning more about the creative process, Ester, a textile artist, can be seen working at her sewing machine in the light-filled corner studio space. Here she creates stitched wall-art based on heritage, traditions and every-day stories. Her current series of work is based on the legends surrounding the local landmark of Knockma in Belclare.
For photographs, news and information about upcoming workshops see www.esterkeily.com
