Join artist Mairead Holohan to experiment with natural inks made from foraged materials, make your own concertina notebook and create a 360° sketch of your chosen view outside with natural inks and charcoal.

We will start with a short introduction to the idea of working with natural materials. I will show the group a selection of my work and the materials that I like to use. I will also discuss the idea of slow work, do less take in the environment, be cognisant of how our environment and mood affects our work. We will then go on to make a simple concertina sketchbook.

Participants will find a spot that appeals to them and proceed to do a 360 degrees sketch of a chosen area, We will provide a range of materials, dip pens, brushes, pencils, charcoal, homemade inks and watercolours. All non toxic.

People may bring their own materials and fold up chairs, easels etc if they wish. We will have a selection of seats. I suggest people bring their own keep cup and we can snack as we go, except for lunch time.

Ages: 16+

Mairead is an Artist rooted in Eco Art who tries to remain curious about many things. Having just participated in a Postgraduate Diploma in Art and Ecology and a Certificate in Sustainable Exhibition Making in NCAD. She has an MA in Education. Her current practice focuses on the plants that colonise disturbed land. The plants that pop up first in wild areas, searching for hints of earlier lives, ancient lives, remnants of trees growing from stone walls, natural or planted; the things that survive in the cracks. She walks the hills and fields in her adopted home in the hills in south Carlow. She is fascinated by these ancient stone walls which were here on the early ordinance survey maps, in around our home on both sides of White Mountain. She records her walks in a variety of media, often using her own inks to draw with, her phone to take photographs and Go-Pro to video my walks. Back in the studio she pulls these together to tell her stories. She likes to bring humour to her work.

www.maireadholohanartist.com

The Sustainable Futures Summer School is kindly funded by Creative Ireland.