About Us
Inspired by the creative energy of Ireland’s Northwest, Cairde Sligo Arts Festival is a unique coming together of artists and audiences. It is a celebration of imagination and shared experience that welcomes all.
Festival 2024
Highlights in 2024 include exhibitions and events as part of Hereditas, a collaborative art project between artist Seamus Nolan and Sligo Traveller Support Group exploring elements of Traveller culture and social history; The Wandering Gaze, a major exhibition of work by Jack Butler Yeats exploring nomadic groups in partnership with The Model; Bafushia an exhibition of works by contemporary Traveller artist, award winning Catalan street performer Joan Catalá with Idiófona at Hazelwood House; Prologue, the world premiere of spectacle work by Twisted Lane at Temple House Estate, Unveiled, the sharing of four new works across theatre / dance / circus in partnership with Hawk’s Well Theatre; In conversation events with authors Adania Shibli and Sinéad Gleeson and Maeve, Warrior Queen- a closing community celebratory procession.
Festival Team
Director
Tara McGowan / director@cairdefestival.com
Festival Manager
Stéphanie Pawula / manager@cairdefestival.com
Communications & Development Manager
Cayla O’Carroll / communications@cairdefestival.com
Festival Production Manager
Barry McKinney / production@cairdefestival.com
Event Production Managers
Maurice Power and Hannah Dobson
Public Relations
Bowe Communications
Sound Engineers
Dickon Whitehead, Ray Duffy, Ray McAndrew, Luke Devaney and Thom Pitts
Event Technicians
Shane Larkin, George Gallagher and Pete Vamos
Exhibition Installer
Terry Markey
Transport
Gerry Ryan
Production Crew
Chan Kin, Alan Clarke, Rummy McCullagh, Tadhg Power, Valli Schäfer and Anika Baarhs
Artist Liaison
Juley Ann Collins
Volunteer Coordinators
Amy O’Hara and Sandy Porter
Festival Photographers / Film
Cían Flynn and Anna Leask
Festival Interns
Lorina Otto and Olusegun Ifade
Promenade Trainee Producers
Bernie McDonagh, Winnie Mongan and Winnie Stokes
Wandering Voices Curators
Chandrika Narayanan Mohan and Patrick Curley
Cairde Visual Committee
Lizzie Kinsella, Bettina Seitz, Emma Stroude, Michael Wann and Steve Wickham
Thanks to our outgoing committee: Barra Cassidy, Cormac O’Leary, Heidi Wickham, Lorna Watkins and Marilin North
General Information: info@cairdefestival.com
Board of Directors
Chairperson: Mark Garry
Directors: Niall Henry, Lucia Macari, Jennifer O’Donovan and Elske Rahill
Company Secretary: Mark Willis