A group of Traveller children from Co Leitrim were welcomed to the National Museum of Ireland (NMI) in Co Mayo at the weekend for the launch of an exhibition of their artwork, which celebrates their community’s traditions and skills.
Among the young artists who participated in the “Gaw-Yas Grannie” (Traveller Children’s Identity) project, which the museum is showcasing until April 3rd, was 12-year-old Keiran Stokes from Carrick-on-Shannon.
The exhibition includes a clay cup, which the child made to honour his great grandfather, one of the few remaining tinsmiths in the country, who traditionally made “ponchers” or cups out of tin or copper.
Keiran said: “I made mine for my great grandad. He’s Tom Stokes the tinsmith”.
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Keiran and his friend Tony Reilly (12), also from Carrick-on-Shannon, were among a group of 30 children whose portraits have pride of place alongside their artwork, in the NMI (Country Life) at Turlough Park near Castlebar, for the duration of the exhibition.
Funded by Creative Ireland, the project was facilitated by artist Kate Murtagh Sheridan who started working with the children in 2019.
“The children were extremely enthusiastic and they taught me a lot about their culture,” the artist said. She said the children had been inspired by visits from role models from within the Traveller community, including singer and storyteller Thomas McCarthy who in 2019 won the Graham Ceoil Traditonal Singer of the Year award.
Mary McDonagh also encouraged them to learn more about the traditional Traveller language.
Among the highlights of Saturday’s reception in the museum was when a film depicting the children working on a range of art projects was shown to the delight of the participants and their families who also attended the special viewing.
The children’s artwork was created at the Shannonside Community Centre in Carrick-on-Shannon where they learned a range of media and artistic techniques over a 10 month period.
Murtagh Sheridan said the involvement of the older generations of their families was key to the project’s success as the children were exploring their identity and learning more about their heritage.
Among the exhibits are the photographic portraits mounted by the children on colourful hand-printed backgrounds, ceramic cups echoing the tradition of making ponchers, fabric tiles incorporating words from the Cant language, and a hand-stitched quilt made by women from the community.
