Join us for the launch of Seaweed Stories at The Courthouse Gallery in Ennistymon.

4th April @7pm | Courthouse Gallery, Ennistymon | No Booking Required

Seaweed Stories was a six-month-long project that invited the community in North Clare to explore the Liscannor Bay coastline together with scientists and artists, tracing forgotten lines of connection between land, sea, story, and people. The exhibition is a collection of prints, samples, and photography by participants made over the course of the project. The launch will include a selection of seaweed treats and a panel chat with horticulturist Oonagh O’Dwyer and Marine Biologist Cormac McGinley.

Maeve Stone says of the exhibition, “We’re so delighted that the work and ideas that were created over the last few months will be on display for the community here in North Clare. We’re really grateful to Éanna Byrt at The Courthouse Gallery for giving the project such a gorgeous home for the week.”

The project was led by Alex Gill and Maeve Stone, who are artists living and working in North West Clare and form Cracking Light Productions. This project was a collaboration with Oonagh O’Dwyer, who is a horticulturist and seaweed forager who runs ‘Wild Kitchen’. She says of the experience, “Humans have a deeply ingrained love of nature imprinted into our DNA. This project endorses this through collaboration, exploration, fun, and community engagement and highlights the love and sense of stewardship we share for the coastline of Clare and beyond.”

The exhibition will run for one week only in the main space at the Courthouse Gallery and will appeal to all ages and anyone who has a love of nature or the sea.

Alex Gill says, “It really is a project from the community and for the community. It’s always satisfying to be able to bring together local expertise, scientists, and creative thinkers to explore the challenges we’re facing. Liscannor Bay and the coastline here is so extraordinary and offers so much to us that having the time to pay attention to all that’s living there, and think about what it needs, has been a privilege.”

Exhibition Details:
Courthouse Gallery, Ennistymon
Saturday 4th April – Saturday 11th April
Free Entry | No Booking Required

TIDAL ArtS – Seaweed Stories

TIDAL ArtS is a Horizon EU project that combines the power of art and science to inspire action for our ocean and waters.

Twenty groundbreaking art and science projects from across Europe were selected by TIDAL ArtS as part of the Lighthouse Projects in September 2025, a Horizon EU initiative engaging communities through creativity and research to protect and restore our marine and freshwater ecosystems.

Chosen from over 600 applications across Europe, the winning projects span the Atlantic-Arctic, Mediterranean, Baltic-North Sea, and Danube-Black Sea regions. Each will receive support to unite artists, scientists, and communities in advancing the European Commission’s Mission Ocean goal of restoring the health of our waters by 2030.

Among the five selected in the Atlantic-Arctic Lighthouse region is Seaweed Stories, a six-month community-based project led by Cracking Light Productions in County Clare on Ireland’s west coast.

Photo credits: Alex Gill