Arts for Health, West Cork

28/08/2026

Listening With Your Skin
Audio-described and tactile tour with Emilie Conway at Uillinn West Cork Arts Centre
Wednesday 9 September 2026, 1pm to 2pm
Free event with limited places, pre-booking is essential.
To book, call 02822090 or email [email protected]

Experience Dr Siobhán McGibbon’s exhibition - Love Beyond the Species and the Sexual - through a tour created and led by visually impaired artist and aesthetic accessibility consultant Emilie Conway. Designed from a blind and low-vision perspective, this tour offers a rich multisensory non-visual experience of the speculative world of Xenophon. Through Emilie’s live audio description and spatial guidance, visitors are invited to interact directly with tactile biomaterial sculptures and mycelial webs, feel sculpted forms and scale, and explore custom olfactory scents created with artist Frank Bloem.

To read more about this event and exhibition, please visit the link below.
https://artsforhealthwestcork.com/listening-with-your-skin/

Supported by an Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon Project Award. Uillinn West Cork Arts Centre acknowledges the financial support of The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon in making exhibitions possible.

Image description: A photograph in a gallery setting shows a person with arm reaching up, looking up at a cylindrical pale yellow and brown sculpture suspended from the ceiling; a bright light shines through the cylinder.

Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre
HSE Ireland
HSE South West
The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon
Cork Education and Training Board
Cork County Council
Cork County Council Library & Arts Service

27/08/2026

September in Skibbereen: New Series of Creative Carers with Sarah Ruttle ✨

Family carers are warmly welcomed to join our upcoming Creative Carers visual art workshops. Starting this September, Sarah Ruttle will facilitate a six week series of workshops in Skibbereen CFRC. Creative Carers sessions are relaxed and friendly spaces that offer family carers the opportunity to take a moment for themselves, connect with others, and explore their own creativity.

These workshops are free, and no previous experience is needed. All materials will be provided. Dates below!

Tuesdays, 10.30am – 12.30pm, Skibbereen Community & Family Resource Centre

15 September 2026
22 September 2026
29 September 2026
6 October 2026
13 October 2026
20 October 2026

Please contact Gráinne at 028 23572 or email [email protected] with any questions or to book your free place.

Image by Sarah Ruttle.

Skibbereen Community and Family Resource Centre
Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre
HSE Ireland
HSE South West
The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon
Cork Education and Training Board
Cork County Council
Cork County Council Library & Arts Service

21/08/2026

Dates for Creative Carers workshops starting this September 💚

We have new series starting in Dunmanway, Skibbereen, Castletownbere, and Clonakilty. Creative Carers workshops are open to all family carers, and offer an opportunity to relax, connect with others, and explore your own creativity over a cup of tea.

The workshops are free but booking is essential. No previous experience is needed, all materials are provided. Get in touch with any questions, and please feel free to share!

Dunmanway Family Resource Centre
Skibbereen Community and Family Resource Centre
Beara West Resource Centre
Clonakilty Notice Board
West Cork Travellers Centre
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100082711952800
Family Carers Ireland
HSE Ireland
HSE South West
The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon
Cork Education and Training Board
Cork County Council

19/08/2026

We’re looking forward to a September full of Creative Carers!

Arts for Health warmly welcomes family carers to join one of our wonderful new series of Creative Carers in Dunmanway, Castletownbere, Skibbereen, or Clonakilty. Creative Carers workshops are relaxed and friendly spaces that offer family carers the opportunity to take a moment for themselves, connect with others, and explore their own creativity.

These sessions are free, and no previous experience is needed. All materials will be provided. Upcoming dates below!

Dunmanway - Visual art with Anne Harrington Rees
Tuesdays, 10am - 12pm @ Dunmanway FRC
1, 8, 29 Sept, 6 Oct 2026

Castletownbere - Visual art with Catherine Weld
Thursdays, 2.30pm - 4.30pm @ Beara West Resource Centre
10, 17, 24 Sept, 1, 8, 15 Oct 2026

Skibbereen - Visual art with Sarah Ruttle
Tuesdays, 10.30am - 12.30pm @ Skibbereen CFRC
15, 22, 29 Sept, 6, 13, 20 Oct 2026

Clonakilty - Musical coffee mornings with Justin Grounds
Fridays, 10.30am - 12pm @ West Cork Traveller's Centre
4 Sept, 2 Oct, 6 Nov, 4 Dec 2026

For more information please email [email protected] or call Uillinn WCAC on 028 22090

Image by Sarah Ruttle.

Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre
HSE Ireland
HSE South West
The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon
Cork Education and Training Board
Cork County Council
Cork County Council Library & Arts Service

13/08/2026

Two new series of Creative Carers are starting this September!

Join Sarah Ruttle in Skibbereen or Anne Harrington Rees in Dunmanway for a series of relaxed visual art workshops. Open to all family carers, the workshops are welcoming spaces that offer carers the opportunity to meet people, take a moment for themselves, and explore their own creativity.

These workshops are free but booking is essential. No previous experience is necessary, all materials provided.

Follow the link below for more details!
https://artsforhealthwestcork.com/creative-carers-returns-this-september/

Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre
HSE Ireland
HSE South West
The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon Cork Education and Training Board
Cork County Council
Cork County Council Library & Arts Service

Two new series of Creative Carers start this September! Family carers are warmly welcomed to join our upcoming Creative Carers arts workshops. Starting this September,…

12/08/2026

Awards for our Artists! 🎉

We are always hugely proud of our artist team and the amazing work they do, so it was particularly special to see two team members recently recognised for their work through national funding awards.

Musician and composer Justin Grounds was awarded a Participatory Arts Bursary Award by The Arts Council this year. Justin plans to use this award to undertake research and development work which will bring together his training and practice as a composer with his ongoing work and research in music and dementia. Justin will engage with three classically trained musicians, and introduce them to the participants in four community hospitals. They will develop ideas for interactive scores which could act as an invitation for musicians and hospital residents to create music together.

Étáin Collins was recently awarded the Emerging Artist Research & Development Bursary from artsandhealth.ie. This award will allow Étáin to explore how to translate her own songwriting practice into something she and participants can do together. To support this learning, Étáin will undertake a series of mentorship workshops with Justin Grounds. She will also spend time on her own research and practice. The learning will focus on moving conversation and story sharing into a shared creative writing practice, as well as composing a melody as a group, recording in the healthcare setting, and collaborative producing.

Thank you to The Arts Council, artsandhealth.ie, Réalta, HSE, and Healthy Ireland for supporting our artists. Keep an eye on our social media and website to see how this work progresses!

Photo credit: Justin Grounds by Gavin Millar, Étáin Collins by Elisa Babkina.

The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon
artsandhealth.ie
Réalta, Developing Arts + Health in Ireland
HSE Ireland
HSE South West
Healthy Ireland
Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre
Cork Education and Training Board
Cork County Council
Cork County Council Library & Arts Service

07/08/2026

Two new series of Creative Carers start this September! 🌿

Family carers are warmly welcomed to join our upcoming Creative Carers arts workshops. Starting this September, Anne Harrington Rees will be facilitating workshops in Dunmanway Family Resource Centre, while Sarah Ruttle will offer sessions in Skibbereen. Creative Carers workshops are relaxed and friendly spaces that offer family carers the opportunity to take a moment for themselves, connect with others, and explore their own creativity.

These sessions are free, and no previous experience is needed. All materials will be provided. Upcoming dates below!

Dunmanway
Visual art workshops with Anne Harrington Rees at Dunmanway Family Resource Centre
Tuesdays, 10am to 12pm

1, 6, 29 September 2026

6 October 2026

To book your place or for further information, please contact Debbie Hayes at 023 885 6818 or email [email protected]

Skibbereen
Visual art workshops with Sarah Ruttle at Skibbereen Community and Family Resource Centre
Tuesdays, 10.30am to 12.30pm

15, 22, 29 September 2026

6, 13, 20 October 2026

Please contact Gráinne at 028 23572 or email [email protected] with any questions or to book your free place.

To read more about this programme, please visit our Creative Carers webpage. Keep an eye on our social media for more upcoming series!
https://artsforhealthwestcork.com/projects-recent/creative-carers/

Image by Sarah Ruttle.

Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre
HSE Ireland
HSE South West
The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon
Cork Education and Training Board
Cork County Council
Cork County Council Library & Arts Service

06/08/2026

What a beautiful time in Schull Community Hospital yesterday kicking off our annual Summer Concert Tour! ☀

Hospital residents and staff, as well as family and friends, spent the morning singing along to favourite songs with musicians Étáin Collins and Patrick O' Laoghaire. From Irish ballads to Johnny Cash, musical hits to Simon & Garfunkel, there was something for everyone to enjoy. Stories and memories weaved throughout the songs, with one resident reminiscing about singing with her brother as a child, and another speaking about celebrating their golden jubilee wedding anniversary!

Étáin and Patrick will be travelling to six more healthcare settings throughout August and are looking forward to lots more singing and stories!

Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre
HSE Ireland
HSE South West
The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon
Cork Education and Training Board
Cork County Council
Cork County Council Library & Arts Service

30/07/2026

On Thursday 16 July 2026 writer E.R. Murray, and poet/spoken word artist, Holly Hughes, visited Bantry Day Care Centre as part of the West Cork Literary Festival in partnership with Arts for Health West Cork.

Both writers talked with attendees about their creative process, how writing helps them to make sense of the world and provides comfort as well as laughs.

These sessions are all about connection – to the literary festival, to arts and health, and to each other. You can read about the afternoon in full on our website (linked in bio). We look forward to continuing our Arts for Health partnership with West Cork Literary Festival in 2027!

https://artsforhealthwestcork.com/arts-for-health-at-west-cork-literary-festival/

Elizabeth Rose Murray
West Cork Literary Festival
Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre
HSE Ireland
HSE South West
The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon
Cork Education and Training Board
Cork County Council
Cork County Council Library & Arts Service

29/07/2026

Members of the Arts for Health artist team gathered together last week for a wonderful afternoon of mark-making, movement, and play!

Over the last couple of years visual artist Sharon dipity has been exploring mark-making and movement as part of an Arts for Health research project. Last week, Sharon shared her learning with the Arts for Health artist team through a practical afternoon workshop. Over the course of an hour, Sharon led the group through a series of creative practices exploring mark-making and movement.

Read more about the research sharing at the link below. A big thank you to Sharon for a wonderful afternoon!

https://artsforhealthwestcork.com/mark-making-movement-and-play/

Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre
HSE Ireland
HSE South West
The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon
Cork Education and Training Board
Cork County Council
Cork County Council Library & Arts Service