Artlink, a pioneer in community-focused art initiatives, is thrilled to announce the revival of the Swan Park Ceramic Trail. Spearheaded by Aileen Barr, the project aims to celebrate the intersection of art, nature, and community engagement.
Artlink’s first public art project, Art in the Park, was initiated in 1994 by Aileen Barr, one of Artlink’s three founding artists. Aileen worked with a local FAS scheme to create tiles for a seat and environmental tile trail throughout Swan Park.
With the regeneration of Swan Park after the 2017 flood, Artlink wanted to revisit this project, which meant so much to the local community. This new project has developed new ceramic pieces for the park based on the original artwork. Aileen, who has been based in San Francisco since 2002, returned to Artlink in 2023 to collaborate with local artists in developing designs and delivering a series of presentations and ceramic workshops with community groups to create tiles for a new seat.
Alongside this, local artist Matthew Porter has been collaborating with the public to create a ceramic trail detailing the biodiversity of the park.
During the research phase, co-ordinated by artist Grainne McMenamin, Artlink worked with Claire Moore (Thompson) from Keeper of the Ways (formerly Foraging Donegal) and Sue and John Shiels who researched and produced a Natural History Survey of the Park commissioned by Buncrana Tidy Towns in 2010-12.
Additionally, Aileen and the community have recreated the iconic circular ceramic mosaic seat, themed around the Life Cycle of the Salmon, as a focal point within the park.
Joining Aileen in this endeavour were two of the original Art in the Park participants, Sinead Craig and Geraldine Timlin, and in addition Sue Goodwin, who was artist in residence with Artlink in the early years, and local artist Julie Magee. Local groups included iCare, North West Home Education Group, Sliabh Sneacht Day Centre, Gaelscoil Bhun Cranncha and The Exchange Intercultural Cafe.
About the artists:
Aileen Barr is a distinguished artist specialising in ceramics, with a rich history of creating handmade tile projects for public spaces. Her legacy includes renowned tiled stairways in San Francisco, collaborations with Colette Crutcher, and co-founding Artlink. Prior to her relocation to the United States in 2002, Barr led numerous community-based Public Art projects in Donegal, leaving an indelible mark on the Irish art scene.
Matthew Porter is a visual artist, specialising in ceramics, based in Buncrana. He holds a BA in Contemporary Applied Arts from Crawford College of Art and Design, Cork. In 2019 he was commissioned to produce a tile piece for the Laurentic memorial at Fort Dunree. He established his ceramics business Puca Pottery and has been involved in various education initiatives at Artlink over the past few years.
The project has been made possible with funding from The Arts Council and Donegal County Council.
