Special to The Irish American Post

The Burren College of Art has just completed a new gallery and MFA studio wing that includes a 6,500-square-feet building housing 20 studio spaces and a large gallery. This makes it the largest private art space in Ireland, built to take large pieces of work, according to Mary Hawkes-Greene, the college president. 

Prof. Sir Christopher Frayling, rector of the Royal College of Art in London, will officially launch the new wing on April 16 with the opening of the first MFA graduating show. The exhibition will run until May 2.

The school is located on the outskirts of Ballyvaughn, a village in the rugged west of Ireland. Burren College is a not-for-profit organization, dedicated to enhancing the cultural life of the area. Entrance to the gallery will be free to the public, said Hawkes Green.

The new wing provides each masters’ student with an individual space 14’ x 14’ x 14’. The clean, simple, design features movable walls that offer maximum flexibility and transforma the studio spaces into an enormous gallery space when required. Natural and artificial light, internet access, and group critique space contribute to the working environment. 

The 1,400-square-feet gallery also features 14-feet high walls for the larger works. A program of national and international exhibitions is currently being planned, according to school officials. The gallery will open on April 16 with the first masters of fine art graduating exhibition. Painting, drawing, photography, sculpture, installation and sound works will be accommodated. The ability to move the studio walls and transform the studios into exhibition spaces substantially increases the exhibition capacity for such a variety of works. 

Construction began in September, 2004, and was completed by mid-January, 2005. The time frame was tight because the space was required for incoming students a the first of the year. Subsequently, local building contractor John Connole and his team worked tirelessly, even over the Christmas holiday to ensure the building was finished in timely manner, said Hawkes-Greene. 

The college is fortunate to own the land so costs only involved the construction. The budget was just under a million Euro. A grant of 250,000 Euro was secured from the National Development Plan administered by Shannon Development. 

Architect John O’Reilly is originally from Donegal and currently iving in the Burren where he built a spectacular home just a few miles from the college. O’Reilly specializes in gallery design and worked for many years with the noted Japanese architect Arata Isozaki. O’Reilly’s buildings include The Soho Guggenheim and Brooklyn Museum, N.Y., as well as a new wing at Limerick City Art gallery. 

"John was delighted to be asked to design our gallery and studios," said Hawkes-Greene. "Since the Burren is such a precious and beautiful landscape, it is important to us that the people we work with understand and share our love for place," she pointed out. 

The original college buildings were designed by Michael Healy of Limerick and are wonderfully sympathetic to the area. "They complement the castle and look like they have always existed. The use of local limestone and wood accentuates this belonging," explained Hawkes-Greene. "The new studios and gallery are at the rear of the college. We wanted them to connect, but be totally different in style. This merging of the modern with the traditional has been achieved very successfully," she added.

"These amazing studio spaces in the heart of the Burren, provide an unrivalled working and creative environment for our students," said Hawkes-Greene. "Our ethos has always been to provide time, space and inspiration, elements crucial to the development of artists. This new wing, built in our 10th year, consolidates our commitment to this belief and is a wonderful addition to the campus."

"I am happy that as a college, we now have what we need. The ethos of the college is to be small.We do not intend to expand our student numbers beyond a hundred. We provide an experience different from that of the large, urban-based institutions," Hawkes-Greene indicated. 

According to Hawkes-Greene, the MFA course has been an immediate success with 17 students currently participating. "This is hardly surprising when one considers the elements it offers students," she said, citing the opportunity to work in the amazingly inspirational Burren environment and access to the National University of Ireland, Galway, which accredits the degree. Visiting faculty from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Royal College of Art in London, as well as leaders in graduate art education in the States and in London, also conduct classes. 

"Add to that private new state-of -the art studio spaces with unlimited access and one really has the perfect situation in which the developing artist can thrive," Hawkes-Greene enthused. "Our student body comes from Ireland, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Uganda. We look forward to expanding this international mix A particularly encouraging feature is the number of students applying for an MFA who had previously spent a semester or summer school at the Burren."

She explained that the college "focuses on the development of the individual artist and on giving students who study here the time, space and inspiration needed to find their artistic voice." 

The facilities now provide the individual studios for 20 MFA students and 40 undergraduate study-abroad students. Resident artists also can use the spaces during the summer when a series of workshops is hosted at the college. 

"The Burren College of Art exists because of the Burren. We feel a strong responsibility to the area, its protection and appropriate development. What I really want to see is the college develop its educational role to benefit the Burren," Hawkes-Greene continued. "I could see the college being the natural home for The Burren Conservation Resource Centre. The center would bring together all of the research currently existing on the Burren, be a research center for new study and an information point for visitors to the area," she said. 

Additionally, Newtown Castle, the college’s restored 16th century tower-house, can provide an interesting extension to the gallery. The school is currently assembling a panel of gallery experts as its exhibitions advisory council and an exhibitions officer will soon be appointed. "We would expect to devote the space to our students during semester time and run five to six other exhibitions, particularly during the summer months," said Hawkes-Greene.

This might involve a new building at some point in the future, she said. "Of course, there is always work to be done on Newtown Castle, where the most pressing issue now being to render the outside and whitewash it. For the moment, we will enjoy our new studios and gallery and invite interested donors to get involved with us," she said.