Creative Maker logo (Courtesy of Creative Maker site)
By Geneva Pattison
Have you ever wanted to design your own poster or card? Well now you have the chance to materialise those design ideas and get your creativity flowing this coming Saturday, the 16th. at the launch of PrintLab, in the National Print Museum. The Beggars Bush museum will be one of four different cultural centers involved as part of the Creative Makers project, co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme. Other countries involved in the project include Italy, Spain, and Estonia.
The Creative Europe Programme strives to support heritage and cultural sectors internationally by funding innovative projects for the populous. In doing so, they aim to strengthen cultural bonds within Europe and further afield, while also generating fresh interest in existing heritage closer to home by developing audiences. The actions undertaken will hopefully generate more funding and employment within the small to medium creative sectors within Europe and will highlight the importance of linguistic diversity across the continent.
PrintLab’s goal is to involve all families and children to take part in “hands-on social experiences” in order to teach them about the current communicative aspects of letterpress printing and the historical relevance of the skill. These workshops are inspired by the ‘Fablab’ concept, which provides tools and spaces for public technological designs and craft exploration.The workshops will be based around both digital creation and physical printing, merging the two for an enhanced learning experience. Likewise, the delivery of the ‘Fablab-style’ workshops will encourage both team skills and individual skills.
As stated in the press release, the launch workshop will be led by the letterpress printing artist Mary Plunkett and all are welcome. PrintLab will be open to the public on Saturday February 16th, from 14:00-16:30 and is a free event.
For more information from the Print Museum email info@nationalprintmuseum.ie
To see some of Mary Plunketts’ work visit her website at http://maryplunkett.ie/
Print Museum Wins Industrial Heritage Award
The Print Museum was the well deserving winner of an Industrial Heritage Award on the 26th of February. Sponsored by the ESB, the Industrial Heritage Awards are an annual celebration of the people and places who aspire to keep historical crafts and knowledge alive. As stated in the press release “The Industrial Heritage Association of Ireland seeks to increase the public’s awareness and understanding of our industrial past. The long term mission is to extend and improve the level of assistance to its members and the public, helping them to find effective ways to contribute to the preservation and conservation of our industrial heritage”
The ceremony was held in the ESB head office on East Wall Road and the museum received the award for best museum and best restored site. CEO Carla Marrinan-Funder stated in her acceptance speech, “As a charity operating on a shoe-string budget, the people involved in driving the successes of the Museum must be acknowledged. I would like to say a special thanks to the dynamic and committed staff, the panel of retired printers and compositors for sharing their craft and knowledge with such devotion, and finally to the Board and Committees”.
The Titanic Museum in Belfast was a previous recipient of the award. This is a huge achievement for the very worthy Print Museum who in 2017 increased their visitor numbers by 300%. Similarly the museum has acknowledged the hard work of every member of their team, who enabled them to flourish on their small budget. Newsfour would like to congratulate the National Print Museum on their win.
