Non's Airmid and Brigid light up major landmarks

The powerful art of the late Non Waters was poignantly brought to life this week as part of the spectacular Herstory light shows at major landmarks in Dublin and Kildare, in honour of St Brigid.

The much loved local artist and teacher passed away on November 28 last, at her home at Clonkeen, The Pigeons, following a courageous battle with illness.

Back in February of last year, Non had spoken of her delight when her pink-haired goddess Brigid was spectacularly illuminated on the walls of a Kildare cathedral and locally on Athlone Castle as part of the captivating Herstory light show event. A short time later, she movingly recounted her own cancer diagnosis and the importance of art as a therapy for her. That, in turn, inspired her to create a stunning painting depicting Airmid, the Irish goddess of healing, which she hoped would inspire others.

Poignantly, both of these paintings were lit up in spectacular fashion this week on the facade of Trinity College, and the GPO in Dublin, while another of her depictions of the goddess Brigid which she previously described as EU Brigid was also illuminated to great effect on the walls of Kilkea Castle, in Kildare.

Organisers of the Herstory light show said they were heartbroken to hear of Non's passing, and had been in touch with her family to invite them to come to the event to see her Airmid illuminated for the first time.

In March of last year, the late artist had talked about her love of Celtic mythology, and about the many frontline medical personnel who inspired her to create such a captivating profile of the healing goddess Airmid as she battled cancer.

Her pink-haired Brigid, a painting she donated to the popular Lunch by the Lake event held in Wineport Lodge back in 2019 for Breast Cancer Awareness, represented a protective Brigid who stands by women affected by cancer, as they take their journey to healing, the local artist explained last year.

The other piece, which lit up Kilkea Castle in Kildare called EU Brigid was inspired by the goddess Brigid and her namesake St Brigid, who were both unifying forces not just in Ireland but right across Europe.

This artwork, Non previously outlined, represented those forces and celebrates the multi-cultural aspect of our association with all the different countries of the EU, who together stood shoulder to shoulder to help maintain an open border on the island of Ireland.

This painting also makes reference to the legend of St Brigid’s cloak by highlighting each member state’s national flag on the collar.

Founded in 2016, the Herstory movement tells the stories of modern, historic and mythic women. Its mission is to give the public authentic female role models and a game-changing education programme, inspiring countries around the world to start their own Herstory movements.

Since 2017, the annual light show illuminates iconic landmarks and sacred sites with artwork in honour of women to mark St Brigid’s Day.