Local designers shortlisted for Future Makers awards

Three local artists have been shortlisted for this year's finals of the Design and Craft Council of Ireland Future Makers Awards, which take place in Dublin next Tuesday.

South Roscommon ceramic artist, Chloe Lennon, and two Westmeath artists, Carol Kelly and Eoghan McGuinness, will pit their design skills against a shortlist of makers and designers from Donegal to Cork in this year's prestigious competition. With a total prize fund of €25,000, the competition is one of the largest prize-funded design and craft award programmes in Europe.

Carol Kelly is a professional artist who is originally from Clonfad, Athlone. She received a Bachelor of Fine Art and Design Honours Degree from GMIT Galway and MA in Multidisciplinary Printmaking from UWE Bristol. Her work is of a contemporary nature and consists of enamelled wall art and abstract paintings.

Another Westmeath artist, who has been shortlisted in the Students and Recent Graduates category, is Eoghan McGuinness. A graduate of the National College of Art and Design (NCAD) with a BA in Jewellery and Objects, his innovative jewellery designs take inspiration from the green spaces around the NCAD campus in Dublin 8.

For his portfolio, titled ‘Naturally Green’, Eoghan used precious metals, gemstones and casting techniques to create a dazzling array of timeless pieces, including a sterling silver bracelet which was inspired by the historic walls enclosing the NCAD field. Each link of the bracelet was hand-cast using an ancient sandblasting technique to create a unique piece of jewellery which is reminiscent of the heritage walls protecting the NCAD campus.

Chloe Lennon, who is a native of Ballydangan in South Roscommon, is also a graduate of the NCAD with a BA (Hons) specialising in ceramics, and a past winner of the Future Makers Award. A multi-award winner for her unique ceramic works, she has exhibited extensively both in Ireland and abroad, and she places a particular emphasis on the physical and emotional relationship of the artist to the Irish landscape and environment in her work.

The Future Makers Awards was first established in 2009, and is a Design & Crafts Council Ireland (DCCI) initiative which recognises talent, potential and creativity. It is a platform to showcase the talent of the next generation of makers, designers, and craftspeople looking to take the step from training into enterprise and provides them with much-needed financial support.

This year’s competition saw an impressive range of entries from all around Ireland, with each one demonstrating a unique approach to creating beautiful and functional works of art.

From furniture and fashion design to ceramics and glassblowing, the shortlisted makers represent the most innovative and creative young designers and makers in Ireland, spanning both student and emerging practitioner categories.

The judges for this year’s Future Makers include Victoria Donovan a silversmith with almost 40 years of experience; Irish fashion designer, owner of The Linen Shirt Company and founder of Fashion Connect Ireland, Anneliese Duffy Fallon; Katie Dominy, Co-Founder & CEO of Arts Thread and The Global Creative Graduate Show; Fiona Sheehan, an entrepreneur and brand owner with over 25 years of experience in the design, manufacturing, wholesale, and distribution of Irish-made products; and Belén Llamas-Ferrier, an apprentice of André Buchs’s and an expert in antique frames and techniques, as well as in the design of contemporary frames.

The winners and runners-up will be announced for each category at the Future Makers awards on Tuesday next, September 3, at the RDS in Dublin.