Space Inside Arts Magazine

Winter ‘12 FREE – PLEASE TAKE ONE Vol9 Iss 2

1st Tuesday October to June

Wicklow Sailing Club, Wicklow Town

FREE ADMISSION

Great Music, Poetry and Dance

Space Inside LIVE NIGHTS

Barb

ara O’M

eara

2

Editorial

Hi all,

Welcome to our Winter issue of the Space Inside with more topical articles and information.

Before I forget, please put a note in your diary that the January Live Night will be held on 8th January – the second Tuesday of the month - to give you time to recover from New Year’s celebrations.

Our monthly €100 draw is now up and running and congrats to Wicklow Writers and James Boland the first two lucky winners this season. And a big thank-you to all our Friends – you are still in with 7 chances to win!

Here’s a quick look inside this issue

3 Cambodia – Kingdom of Wonder

4 and 5 Music and Book Reviews 2012

8 Writing from Stillness

10 Colm Brennan In Profile

Remember, you can read our magazine online, too - http://thespaceinside.blogspot.com. See you at our first Live Night of 2013 on 8 January with another lively line-up of music and poetry.

Happy New Year!

Carol Boland

Taking Stock: the National Photographic

Archive from 1998

Taking Stock at the National Photographic Archive (NPA) in Temple Bar, Dublin, is the NPA’s first retrospective. Rosy Wilson stumbled upon it one sunny afternoon in November.

aving time to spare between meetings, I spent a sunny

afternoon in Temple Bar moseying around IFI, the Culture

Box and other interesting spaces, and happened on the

‘Taking Stock’ exhibition.

I'd never seen this branch of the National Library of Ireland, but was

curious to look at the photographs displayed there. The exhibition

area was light and very quiet with only one young man studying the

photos. These were mainly black and white scenes, and people with

historical events related to 20th century history. For example, there

were rather sinister pictures of the Free State Army embarking in

Dublin and landing in Cork during the Civil War. Huge crowds of

civilians looked on in both cities and I wondered what side, if any,

they were on. There were also photos of people coming ashore,

rescued from the wreck of the Lusitania.

My favourite pictures were the many portraits of Irish characters

such as islanders on Inisheer waiting for the Dun Aengus to land. The

men were all on the Quay with women and girls on the land behind.

There was a great photo taken in the 1950s of a farmer ploughing

with 2 fine horses in Liscannor, and overhead the trail of a jet

presumably after taking off at Shannon. Maybe I loved this photo

because I know this part of Co. Clare so well with its combination of

traditional and contemporary ways and culture.

Whether you're from Dublin, Cork, Limerick or Kerry, the Western

Islands or Co. Wicklow, or any other part of Ireland, there will be

photos to remind you of familiar places, people and events.

After a very interesting hour down memory lane with great

photographs, I walked along the Broadwalk to The Winding Stair

Bookshop, before crossing the Halfpenny Bridge, pausing to admire

the colours of sunset on stunning views up and down river.

‘Taking Stock’ runs until summer 2013 and admission is free.

H

Cover Art: Heartlands by Barbara O’Meara The Alley Gallery, Strabane: 7 Jan – 1 Feb ‘13

Barbara is from Wicklow. Her work is inspired by her current interest and investigation of a sunken yew forest on the Irish coastline. Her paintings are based on her interpretation and emotional responses to our connection with nature and the fragility of our lives. Her paintings are also inspired by simplicity and complexity of

human nature. http://www.alley-theatre.com/exhibitions/

3

Janet Smith lived in Wicklow town

for many years and was a member of

the Space Inside team. She is now

working in Cambodia.

n 1975, Cambodia's government,

plagued by corruption and

incompetence, lost its American

military support. Taking advantage of

the opportunity, Pol Pot's Khmer

Rouge army, consisting of teenage

peasant guerrillas, marched into the

capital city Phnom Penh and, on 17th

April, seized control of Cambodia.

Once in power, Pol Pot began a

radical experiment to create an

agrarian utopia inspired in part by

Mao Zedong's Cultural Revolution -

Pol Pot would now attempt his own

‘Super Great Leap Forward’ in

Cambodia, which he renamed the

Democratic Republic of Kampuchea.

That ‘Super Great Leap Forward’

consisted not only of the most

appalling genocide and torture of

Cambodians, but a relentless

destruction of the culture of the

society. All art forms were banned;

the central cultural pillar of

the society – Buddhism –

was snuffed out with the

killing of monks and the

banning of any form of

religious or spiritual

practices. The famous and

exquisitely beautiful

Cambodian traditional dance

known as Apsara was also

banned. Schools were

closed, the use of foreign

languages was banned.

Newspapers and television

stations were shut down,

radios and bicycles

confiscated. Money was

forbidden. All businesses

were shuttered, religion banned,

education halted, health care

eliminated, and parental authority

revoked.

Rebuilding artistic heritage

The road back to normality for

Cambodia has been long and painful.

Today the Killing Fields and the Tuol

Sleng Genocide Museum are much

visited by foreign tourists, egged on

by tuk-tuk drivers eager to earn

dollars. But there is a part of

Cambodian society that is seeking

not so much to forget but to re-build

its rich artistic heritage.

Cambodia Society for the Living Arts

(CSLA) has a mission. That mission is

to make Cambodia known for its Arts

- visual, performance and music – as

much as for its Killing Fields. And it is

making great strides in this direction.

A new CD of Jazz-Khmer music

produced by CSLA is a wonderful

blend of traditional haunting Khmer

music with spikey jazz riffs played on

a blend of old and new instruments.

A Phnom Penh based band called

Krom has just produced a new CD

‘Songs from the Noir’ which draws

some painful attention to the

underbelly of Cambodian life, as well

as a celebration of Khmer culture:

Check out video release, ‘Oh Phnom

Penh’ on Youtube.

Traditional Apsara dancing has seen

a massive revival, along with a

burgeoning performing arts scene

and contemporary dance. Five nights

a week, the traditional Apsara Dance

Company of Cambodia performs in

the grounds of the National

Museum. There is also a Phnom Penh

School of Performing Arts, which has

recently given both free and ticketed

performances in the main theatre in

Phnom Penh.

Phare Ponleu Selpak

Another stunning artistic venture

is the Phare Ponleu Selpak, a well-

known NGO, which began in the

refugees camps in 1986 on the

Thai border. This venture gives

disadvantaged young people the

chance to channel their energies

into learning circus skills of

juggling, clowning and acrobatics,

while raising awareness of issues

such as HIV/AIDS, landmines,

disability and child rights. The

energy, enthusiasm and sheer

hutzpah of these young 14 – 18

olds is inspiring as they re-enact

parts of their history through

performances which make you

gasp as they perform seemingly

impossible feats.

To see the spirit of this country rise

above its trauma is testimony to the

overwhelming power of art to

renew, to re-engage and to redress

atrocities of the past. Think of

Cambodia. Think of its artists.

Wonder at its human spirit.

I

Cambodia

Kingdom of

Wonder

Music Reviews

12 For 2012 Our regular album reviewer, Michael

Tinsley, gives us a run-down of 12 of his top

albums of 2012.

Despite the much heralded on-going

slow death of the music industry, 2012

was yet another phenomenal year for

new music. Starting with a long list over

80 albums I found it a hard job to pick

only 12. In the end I plumped for those

that I kept coming back to: always a

good touchstone.

Action Bronson

Blue Chips

My favourite hip-

hop album of 2012

is undoubtedly the

‘Blue Chips’

mixtape by Action Bronson: a larger

than life 27 year-old professional chef

turned rapper from Flushing, New York

of Albanian stock. Over beats provided

by producer Party Supplies, he delivers

his lurid ghostfaced flavoured rhymes

about his favourite topics of cooking,

women and weed. Fierce, funny and

filthy.

Cat Power

Sun

Sun

Returning from a

wilderness of financial,

substance abuse and

mental health problems Chan Marshall

single-handedly delivers an unexpected

mix of contemporary sounding songs

flavoured with synths and drum

machines. Uptempo singles ‘Ruin’ and

‘Cherokee’ stand-out at first but

repeated listens reveal even greater

depths.

Corin Tucker

Band

Kill My Blues

With Wild Flag’s

eponymous debut

album rightfully

claiming all the post-

Sleater Kinney glory last year, the other

Kinney, Ms. Corin Tucker retuned in

2012 to reclaim some of the limelight

with the righteous rage of Kill My Blues.

Female-fronted alt rock has rarely

sounded this focused and fierce.

Dr. John

Locked Down

My biggest musical

regret of the year

was missing Dr.

John’s July gig in

Vicar Street because, if it was anything

like this album, then it must have been a

treat. On ‘Locked Down’ the New

Orleans Blues legend teams up with the

Black Keys main man Dan Auerback to

deliver 10 brass infused blues-rock

songs that have more funk and vitality

than any septuagenarian should be able

to muster.

Dum Dum Girls

End of Daze

While only a 5

track EP, ‘End of

Daze’ is packed

with more

emotion, drama and quality songs than

most albums. Although centred around

the reverb-drenched slow-burner ‘Lord

Knows’, the other tracks are packed

with enough evolving ennui and

pounding pathos to sooth any broken

heart.

How To Dress

Well

Total Losee

Tom Krell’s

sophomore album as

‘How To Dress Well’

expands his mesmerising alt-

contemporary take on R&B. While the

fidelity is turned-up on this offering,

when compared to his debut, the quality

knob is still stuck on 11. A challenging

but extremely rewarding listen.

Purity Ring

Shrines

The debut album

from Canadian alt-

electro popsters

Purity Ring is an amazingly accomplished

and coherent body of work, filled with

strong melodies, interesting if

sometimes obtuse lyrics, lush swathes of

synths and more innovative beats than a

dozen hip-hop mix tapes put together.

Sharon Van Etten

Tramp

After 10 months on

the stereo it is the

quality of the songs

like ‘Give Out’, ‘Leonard’ and ‘Serpents’

that keep me returning to Ms. Van

Etten’s third album. The understated

arrangements belie the amount of

emotion she manages to squeeze into

every line of every song. A touching and

thrilling triumph.

The Staves

Dead & Born &

Grown

Watford’s finest, the

Stavely-Taylor

sisters, finally released their debut album

in November. It was worth the wait.

‘Dead & Born & Grown’ is an

accomplished but delicate album filled

with beautifully gentle songs and thrilling

blood-harmonies.

Stealing Sheep

Into The

Diamond Sea

Stealing Sheep are a

Liverpool based all-

female three piece.

The 11 songs on their debut album are

all as strong as they are diverse, with

folksy and pastoral elements, particularly

in the vocals, but also touches of

Krautrock, pop, alt rock, prog and

electronica. A veritable rough diamond.

Terror Danjah

Dark Crawler One of many quality releases on the Hyperdub label this year, Dark Crawler

is an ambitious slab of contemporary electronic bass music featuring elements from grime and dubstep. There are plenty of guest vocalists and rappers to add other dimensions to Terror’s cinematic beats. Embrace the fear.

THEESatisfaction awE NaturalE Although out of Seattle, and on the Sub Pop Label, these hip-hop /

soul / electronica grooves couldn’t be further from the grunge sound of yore. Although only 30 minutes long Stas & Cat have filled this album with enough funk, rhymes and clever vocal interplay to last the whole year. An unorthodox delight.

Book Review 2012

Bridge Street Books, Wicklow, is

the proud winner of

the BGE Irish Book

Shop of the Year

Award. Here are

some of their

favourites for Christmas.

Non-Fiction

Our pick of non-fiction includes ‘Into

the Silence, the Great War, Mallory & the

Conquest of Everest’ by Wade Davis.

Taking ten years to write, Wade Davis

asks not whether George Mallory was

the first to reach the summit of Everest,

but rather why he kept climbing on that

fateful day. Expertly researched,

brilliantly written, this is a must for

anyone interested in what it takes to

reach the top of such a mountain.

Or, take a look at the ‘Atlas of the Great

Irish Famine’ by Crowley, Smith and

Murphy. This lavishly-illustrated Atlas is

the definitive summary of all aspects of

the Great Irish Famine. For the best in

sports try ‘The Secret Race’

by Tyler Hamilton, the

ultimate sports exposé,

about Lance Armstrong &

the US Postal team - a

book that takes us into the

secret world of professional

cycling like never before.

For something a bit

different, try ‘The One

Hundred Year Old Man Who

Climbed Out the Window And

Disappeared by Jonas Jonnasson, which

starts on the one-hundredth birthday of

Allan Karlsson. Sitting quietly in his

room in an old people's home, he is

waiting for the party he-never-wanted-

anyway to begin. . The press is going to

be there but, as it turns out, Allan is

not. And so begins his unlikely journey

involving criminals, several murders and

a suitcase full of cash.

Lastly, for a fast paced thriller try ‘The

Black Box’ by Michael Connelly, the

latest thrilling read featuring Harry

Bosch. Or ‘The Bat’ by Jo Nesbo, the

first ever Harry Hole book, only

recently translated into English

Fiction

We loved ‘Flight Behaviour’ by Barbara

Kingsolver - On the Appalachian

Mountains above her home, a young

mother discovers a beautiful and

terrible marvel of nature. As the world

around her is suddenly

transformed by a seeming

miracle, can the old

certainties they have lived

by remain unchallenged?

Stick with this one as it is a

fabulous read – Kingsolver

at her best. Also a very

good read is The ‘Secret

Keeper’ by Kate Morton, the latest from

the much-loved and bestselling author.

Or ‘Painter of Silence’ by Georgina

Harding, a magnificently written book

that is poetic in reading. It’s Romania,

the early 1950s, and a nameless man is

found on the steps of a hospital. Deaf

and mute, he is unable to communicate

until a young nurse called brings paper

and pencils. Slowly, painstakingly,

memories appear on the page. Also

worth a mention are two of

the most talked about books

this year : Maeve Binchy’s ‘A

Week in Winter’ and JK

Rowling’s ‘The Casual Vacancy’.

A Week in Winter is full of

Maeve’s trademark warmth,

humour and characters you

want to spend time with. Set

high on the cliffs on the west

coast of Ireland, Stone House

was falling into disrepair –

until one woman, with a past she

needed to forget, breathed new life into

the place. Although Rowling received

mixed reviews, this is a fine book.

Slightly slow to get into, this is a page

turner.

Teens

Last year, Will Hill stormed the vampire

world with ‘Department 19’, the tale of

the secret government department

which exists to protect us from

Vampires. This year, the sequel ‘The

Rising’ is equally as good, if not better

than the first. A fast paced, action

packed thriller. For a slightly slower

paced thriller, look no further than ‘Girl,

Stolen’ by April Henry. A novel set in

America, in which a car is stolen, while

Cheyenne Wilder is asleep in the back

seat. Things take a twist when we find

out Cheyenne is blind and although she

can’t see her kidnappers, they refuse to

let her go. What follows is seat

gripping and thoroughly enjoyable.

Finally, there are two films about to

storm the big screen this Christmas, so

why not read the book first – ‘The

Hobbit’ by JRR Tolkien comes in

many formats now, and is the

perfect present.. ‘The Perks of

Being a Wallflower’ by Stephen

Chbosky, is the story of freshman

Charlie and a coming of age novel

that will entertain and amuse till

the end.

Children

There are some fantastic new picture

books this year including ‘Wanted: The

Perfect Pet’ by Fiona Roberton, The

Christmas Mouse by Ruth Brown,

adapted from Charles Dickens classic ‘A

Christmas Carol’ and Superworm by Julia

Donaldson. But my

favourite has to be ‘Guess

How Much I love You,

Here, There & Everywhere’

by Sam McBratney, a

new collection of stories

featuring Big Nutbrown

Hare and Little Nutbrown Hare. Also

fantastic is ‘The Snow Bear’ by Holly

Webb. As the snow begins to fall,

Grandpa and Sara build an igloo and

Sara sculpts a snow bear and finds the

snow bear has transformed into a real

live cub!

On every wish list this year are ‘The

New Wimpy Kid’, The Third Wheel by Jeff

Kinney and the David Walliams book

‘Ratburger’. Lastly, Jacqueline Wilson

has 2 books out this Christmas – ‘Four

Children and It’, a retelling of the old

classic. and the third in the Hetty

Feather series ‘Emerald Star’.

All Ages

‘Wicklow Photographs: Exploring County

Wicklow in a photographic Journey’ by Ian

Lush and Paddy Maddock is a fabulous

collection of photographs. Also, ‘My

Olympic Dream’ Katie Taylor’s diary and

photographic journal of how she

achieved Olympic gold, is a lovely

memento and suitable for all the family.

Bridge Street Books T:353(0)404 62240

www.bridgestreetbooks.ie

ROH Live Cinema

La Boheme Tues 15 Jan From a shabby garret to the bustling Café Momus to a snowy courtyard at dawn, this minutely observed panorama of 1830s Parisian life, conjures emotions and atmosphere ranging from joy to tragedy, in large-scale crowd scenes and intimate tableaux. Puccini no doubt drew on his own student escapades for the robust humour of the comic scenes. Movies@Gorey Movies@Dundrum

Riverside Art Gallery Tinahely

Group Art Exhibition

Jan 2013

Riverside Art Gallery is located in the Riverside Business

Center in Tinahely , Co. Wicklow. Art Auctions and

Exhibitions are held at regular intervals.

Group Exhibition of works by Tony Kew, Vincent Lambe

and Elena Mikhailova.

www.riversideartgallery.ie

CONCERT

The Unthanks Thurs 28 February 20.00

The Unthanks have established themselves as one of the most innovative and critically acclaimed folk band to emerge in many years. George Unthank joins his girls with his own band The Keelers, ’ a rowdy, gusty Northumbrian group of shanty singers’. €20/18 conc Mermaid Box Office T: 01 272 4030 www.mermaidartscentre.ie

THEATRE OLIVER!

12 Dec - 12 Jan 14.30 and 19.30 Cameron Mackintosh’s spectacular new production of Lionel Bart’s smash-hit musical OLIVER! which comes to Dublin as part of its first ever UK and Ireland tour. Starring Neil Morrissey as Fagin and Samantha Barks as Nancy. €20 - €50

Bord Gais Theatre Grand Canal Square, Docklands, Dublin, 2, http://www.bordgaisenergytheatre.ie/

OPERA

ART

What’s On – Events that caught the Space Inside’s eye

Declaring Art on the World

How can we avoid the roadblocks of any creative endeavor—be it writing a

novel, or painting a masterpiece?

Anne Graham believes she may

have found the answer.

teven Pressfield helped me

write this article. Or to put it

more correctly, he showed me

the weapons that I must use in the

war against that perpetual enemy of

creativity and productivity -

Resistance.

For years now I have been somewhat

haphazard in my creative output.

Sure, I have made an album and two

EPs in the last two years. But the

process was like the proverbial pulling

of teeth with my musical partner-in-

crime acting as dentist. If he hadn’t

put deadlines for completing the

work, it would probably be still

swirling around in the ether of my

head or on his computer. And don’t

get me started on my last minute

approach to things; only practising or

coming up with that guitar riff the day

before recording and almost NEVER

taking notes of . . . well, notes, chords,

anything that might have made the

process a hell of a lot easier and

perhaps improved the overall quality

of the finished product too.

Articles such as this would (usually)

find themselves sent just in the nick of

time and not always up to standard.

And then there’s my fictional writing,

itself a fiction, as mythical as El

Dorado. Everything rushed or non-

committal. It’s funny because I would

call myself an artistic soul, and

constantly tell friends and family

about the million and one creative

ideas I have waiting in the black to be

borne into life. But I wasn’t doing the

one thing that Stephen Pressfield said

I should be doing - approaching the

work like a Pro.

In his book, The War of Art - Break

Through the Blocks and Win Your

Inner Creative Battles, Pressfield

(author of The Legend of Bagger

Vance and many others) plays General

and drums up the troops (i.e. me and

other creative types) to have courage

and commit to fighting the daily,

never-ending war against your fears -

or as he calls it, Resistance.

In a series of easy-to-read essays, he

tells you that it really is very simple -

sit down before your computer, easel,

bank manager (if an entrepreneur)

and JUST DO IT. He tells the reader to

stop worrying and fussing over

whether their next novel or piece of

art is going to be a commercial or

critical success; if you’re doing that

you become a hack, someone who is

eyeing up what’s fashionable

currently on the ‘market’ and going

with that. If you take this approach,

Pressfield argues, you will never

create the stuff you really love. He

also states that taking the ‘amateur

approach’ of doing it as a sideline,

when it ‘feels right’ to do it, is a cop

out. If you say that you are an artist or

an entrepreneur, then start treating it

seriously and as your main career.

To those who are sceptical to the

financial stability of such an

undertaking, Pressfield takes an

example from his own life - in his early

twenties, his marriage fell apart. Even

though he was working various jobs,

keeping in with conventional society’s

standards of providing for his family,

going against his innate creative spirit

caused him undue stress and inability

to maintain healthy, stable

relationships with others. So, after

many years of rejected novels and

rubbished film scripts, he made the

book - The Legend of Bagger Vance -

he truly wanted to write. It was a

commercial success (despite the

reservations of his agents and others

on the commercial viability of a fiction

book about golf). So whether you

need ‘lucky’ talisman or rituals -

Pressfield invokes the Muse everyday

via a quote from the Homer’s Odyssey

- to mentally prepare yourself each

day, do it. Don’t distract yourself from

the task at hand with logic, reflection,

comfort-eating, drugs or sex, just

jump in.

I entered a short story competition

last week after reading Pressfield. It’s

not Pulitzer-prize winning fare by any

means, but at least I wrote about

what I wanted to - art for art’s sake -

and am prepared to keep at it, keep

learning. If the world decides at any

point to sit up and pay attention to

my battle cry, that’s just a bonus.

The War of Art is available on Amazon

S

8

Shirley McClure has been working

in adult education for almost thirty

years, teaching health and well-

being, as well as English. She runs a

number of creative writing classes

with groups, and has a particular

interest in Creative Writing for

Therapeutic Purposes.

Her one-day Creative Writing

workshops are aimed at beginner

writers and poet, and those who

have been writing for some time.

‘My workshops offer opportunities

for exploration, trying things out,’

says Shirely. ‘Some people come to

these days because they have lost

focus in their work or are looking

for a new 'charge' to ignite their

pages. Others come to dip their

toes in the creative pool, to enjoy a

stimulating, reflective day.’

Shirely has run workshops with

various groups, such as the Active

Retirement in Bray, and is currently

facilitating a course with Arklow

Cancer Support Group entitled

Creative Words for Well-being .

Writing from the Five Elements

This interesting workshop refers to

Chinese philosophy, where the

world and all that's in it - nature,

objects, our senses, our

preoccupations - belong to 5

distinct Phases or Elements.

‘Writers have always been attracted

to the natural world,’ says Shirely,’

and this workshop draws on the 5

Elements, and their many

associations, to begin 5 new pieces

of writing.’ Participants are led into

writing by the use of visual prompts,

evocative materials, and examples

of poetry and prose by established

writers.

‘Art bids us touch and taste and

hear and see the world and

shrinks from all that is of the

brain only, from all that is not a

fountain jetting from the entire

hopes, memories and sensations

of the body’ W.B. Yeats.

Writing from the Body

Shirely’s Writing from the Body, is a

one-day creative writing workshop

for women. She invites participants

to pay attention to the body as an

intrinsic element of life itself,

perhaps comparable to the way that

an artist works at Life Drawing. ‘The

body has been described as our

Home, and in that sense it may be a

good place to start, or indeed

return to, on our writing paths.’

Rich, body-related imagery is

discovered in the pieces written

during this workshop.

Writing from Stillness

One workshop that most of us will

need after the festive season is over

is Writing from Stillness. This

workshop invites you to slow down

and connect with your own

creativity, just as writers like

Thoreau and, more recently, Jane

Hirshfield have done.

‘Conscious stillness is a way for

us to reach our inner core, the

deep place of truth where we

feel connected to the pulse of

life itself – the ultimate creative

principle – and know ourselves

to be one with that’ J McCutchen

Simple mindfulness techniques are

used prior to writing and, as with

the other workshops, no previous

experience is necessary. The next

workshop on Writing from Stillness,

takes place Sunday 24th February

2013 at the Wilton Hotel Southern

Cross Road, Bray, and is open to

both men and women. To register

your interest, email Shirley at

shirleymcclure2@gmail.com or

phone 086 603 4481. Cost is €55

waged/ €45 unwaged/ OAP.

Winner of Cork

Literary Review's

Manuscript

Competition 2009, runner-up in the

Patrick Kavanagh Poetry Award

2009, and shortlisted for the

Strokestown International Poetry

Competition 2012, Shirley’s début

collection, Who's Counting?

(Bradshaw Books) was published in

2010.

http://www.thepoetryvein.com

Writing from Stillness

Are you a writer in need of

inspiration? Carol Boland talks to

Shirley McClure on her

imaginative writing workshops.

9

Following on from her

article on symbolism,

Carol Boland now looks

at how metaphor can

enhance your writing.

A metaphor is a figure of

speech that describes a

subject by asserting that

it is the same as another,

otherwise unrelated,

object. One of the most

prominent examples in

English literature is from

the play As You Like It:

‘All the world’s a stage,

and all the men and women merely

players; they have their exits and

their entrances’ Shakespeare.

This quote is a metaphor because

the world is not literally a stage but

by asserting that the world is a

stage, Shakespeare uses the

comparison to convey an

understanding about how the

world works and the lives of the

people within it.

Metaphor Types

Common types of metaphor

include dead, visual and mixed

metaphors.

Dead

A dead metaphor is one in which

the sense of a transferred image is

absent. For example: ‘to grasp a

concept’ and ‘to gather what

you've understood’ use physical

action as a metaphor for

understanding. Most people do not

visualize the action — dead

metaphors normally go unnoticed.

Visual

Modern advertising relies heavily

on visual metaphors. For example,

in a magazine ad for the banking

firm Morgan Stanley, a man is

pictured bungee jumping off a cliff.

Two words explain this visual

metaphor: a dotted line from the

jumper's head points to the word

"You"; another line from the end of

the bungee cord points to "Us." The

metaphorical message - of safety

and security provided in times of

risk - is conveyed through a single

dramatic image. The Angel Soft/

angel baby advert (above) is

another good example.

Mixed

A mixed metaphor is one that leaps

from one metaphor to another

which is inconsistent with the first.

‘I smell a rat, but I'll nip him in the

bud.’ This form is often used as a

parody of metaphor itself: ‘If we

can hit that bull's-eye then the rest

of the dominoes will fall like a

house of cards.’

Tenor and Vehicle

On a more technical point, a

metaphor expresses the

unfamiliar, or the tenor, in

terms of the familiar, or the

vehicle. When Neil Young

sings, ‘Love is a rose,’ the

‘rose’ is the vehicle for ‘love’

which is the tenor.

‘The apparition of these

faces in the crowd;

Petals on a wet, black

bough.’ Ezra Pound,

Why use metaphor

By using metaphors, you can

convey much more through

implication than through

straightforward language. Take the

case of that literary metaphor

dolphin-torn: what exactly is Yeats

suggesting about the sea, and how

else could this have been

expressed?

Just as writers convey meaning

more open-endedly when they use

metaphorical language, readers

interpret less narrowly. So meaning

is communicated between writer

and reader in a less precise way,

even though the metaphors may

seem concrete and vivid. It is this

imprecision, this 'fuzziness' of

meaning, which makes metaphor

such a powerful tool in the

communication of emotion.

Source: Murray Knowles and

Rosamund Moon, Introducing

Metaphor. Routledge, 2006, and

Internet.

Metaphor in Writing

A visual metaphor used by Angel Soft

10 1

In Profile

Colm Brennan Interview by Carol Boland If Colm Brennan is not a name you immediately

recognise, chances are that you know him better than

you think - for Colm’s sculptures adorne many public

spaces throughout Ireland.

Born in Belmuttet, Co. Mayo, Colm now lives in Co.

Wexford. He was a founder member of the Sculptors’

Society of Ireland and Sculpture in Context and, in 1986,

he established the CAST bronze foundry in Dublin, with

Leo Higgins.

So where might you connect with Colm’s work? If you’ve

been to UCD’s Belfield Campus, RTE Montrose, Conrad

Hotel, Dublin Zoo, even Dublin Airport, then you cannot

have missed his monumental sculptures. Further afield,

Civic Offices, Nenagh, INTE in Leixlip, and Kilmacthomas,

Co. Waterford, all display his pieces. The list of his

exhibitions in Ireland and abroad is endless.

Visiting his studio outside Gorey, you are greeted with a

plethora of manquettes and small pieces of his work. ‘ I

usually work in polystyrene first and then refine it in

wax,’ say Colm, ‘then I work on it in bronze or bronze

and stainless steel, two metals I find that are extremly

compatible.’

Many of Colm’s pieces are

abstract - 'Stele for Cecil

King' in Tobernae Park,

Blackrock, while others

are naturalistic, such as

‘Golden Harvest’ in

Kilmacthomas. His subjects vary from ‘Knockavota

Calves’ to a ‘Melting Glacial Cube’, though one of my

favourite pieces must be the ‘Watchers’ (above).

Though best known for his work in bronze and stainless

steel, Colm also creates prints using the technique of

wood engraving. On top of all that, he is no-mean poet.

You can catch Colm on TG4’s Imeall, in January. An

exhibition of his work in Green Acres Gallery, Wexford,

in March 2013 will be well worth the trip.

www.colmbrennan.ie

A Traveller’s Tale

Jenna Byers recently returned from a trip to Vienna

where she stumbled across a most unusual museum.

Vienna is a city awash with ostentation; palaces of white

stone and churches decked in gold, but tucked away

beneath the walls of the Imperial Palace is the little-

known Globe Museum. This is an experience unique to

the city of Vienna, as it is the only Globe Museum in the

world, and it is a surprising treat for the traveller looking

for something a little off the beaten track.

The museum follows the historical evolution of the

globe, from its earliest inaccurate stages to modern

school versions. Alongside the development of the

terrestrial globe is the collection of celestial globes

charting the night skies. The earlier, baroque globes are

works of art, depicting the constellations in pictorial

form, compared to more contemporary version which

shows the stars as they sit in the sky.

Some of the highlights include a digital globe with an

overlay of the earliest surviving globe, demonstrating

the stark lack of knowledge possessed by early

cartographers. Also fascinating are the lunar globes in

one of the last rooms. The first lunar globe depicts only

one side of the moon because stargazers in the 1600’s

had no way to see the dark side of the moon.

The last room in the museum is home to four collections

owned by private individuals, who have donated their

globes to the museum and this demonstrates the range

of uses that globes have been put to; as bookends,

works of art, as well as informational tools.

No matter how jaded a traveller you might be, this

museum is bound to show you something new or, at the

very least, reignite your passion for travel.

twitters twitters twitters twitters twitters twitters twitters twitters twitters twitters twitters twitters twitters twitters

11

First Fortnight 2013 is again using live music,

spoken-word, theatre, film and visual art to create open

discussion and understanding of mental health problems

and challenge prejudice and discrimination.

Stuart Semple, Le Galaxie, We Cut Corners, Róisín O, Kopek,

actress Mary McEvoy, and acclaimed theatre productions

Silent, Solpadeine Is My Boyfriend & Box of Frogs.

Check out the full line-up on www.FirstFortnight.ie

ARTS CENTRE FOR ENNISCORTHY The Presentation Centre is a new multi-use arts venue in Enniscorthy, Co.Wexford, developed by Enniscorthy Town Council. Situated on the site of the former Presentation Convent, this modern new facility has been sensitively re-developed and retains all the wonderful features of the former chapel including stained glass windows, ornate timber ceiling, original wishbone floor, decorative arches and adjoining walled garden. Contact: Mairead Linneen 0539233000

NEW SALMON BOOKSHOP

Publisher Salmon Poetry has established a new

writing centre and bookshop in Ennistymon, Co

Clare. The Salmon Bookshop & Literary Centre will

host a monthly reading series, book launches and

signings, creative writing workshops, and master

classes facilitated by writers from Ireland, the US,

UK and further afield. The bookshop offers a

wide range of new and second hand books, with

an emphasis on poetry and literary titles.

Ri Sessions is new platform for up and

coming singer songwriters which takes

place on the first Wednesday of every month in Sally

O’Briens, Arklow. They showcase popular artists living in

the Wicklow area, and Leslie Dowdall will perform on 2nd

Jan

Ri Sessions also run a competition with €2,000 worth of

recording prizes sponsored by Gavin Ralston and others.

The competition is open to soloists, duets and bands (18

and over only). Gigs are free with donations to Suicide

or Survive. Contact Ri sessions on Facebook or txt

0872451287.

Creative Writing Comps

Poetry Ireland / Trócaire Poetry Competition Deadline: 1st Mar 13 Dead Good Poetry Competition Deadline: 31st Mar 13 2013 Cardiff International Poetry Competition Deadline: 15th Feb 13 2012 British Haiku Awards Deadline: 31st Jan 13 2013 Hippocrates Prize Deadline: 31st Jan 13 Strokestown International Poetry Award

Deadline: 25th Jan 13 Source: Poetry Ireland

DAULTEN QUAILE

GENEALOGY

Learn How to Trace your Family History

Beginner’s Day Course €50 per person

Guided Field Trip to a Dublin repository €25 per person

Book a researcher to do your research

Reasonable Rates

The Lennon Education Centre Annagh Long, Gorey, Co Wexford

Tel: 05394 10013 or Mobile: 086 3287217

Email: daultenquaile@eircom.net

www.lennoneducationcentre.ie

In Memory of Gerry Sheridan

Gerry Sheridan was a staunch supporter of the Arts. He was a founder member of Wicklow Writers, a Friend of The Space Inside, and a member of the Bealtaine Writers Group (Dublin). He will be sadly missed.

The Butterfly Tree

In leafy Glanmore glade standing tall

the buddleia blooms multi-coloured.

White blossoms draped in ceaseless animation

with Red Admiral, Painted Lady and Speckled Wood.

The lazy days of summer hold

a time of peace and recollection.

Now autumn brings the falling year

while buddleia’s blooms turn russet gold.

Some butterflies turn to larvae and pupa

while others their span of life is ended.

Winter will shed its icy mantle on the tree

coming spring will renew the Butterfly tree again.

Buddleia blossoms will rebound

as Red Admiral flies in from Africa.

Glanmore 2

Famine walls bind

green lawns, towering trees,

haven from a clamorous world.

Streaming river Vartry

marking far boundary,

betimes calm quiet.

Chuckling by leafy trees,

dappled by sunlit spears.

Winter brings angry roaring torrent.

Season grace this place.

Spring awakening land,

multi-coloured crocus and waving daffodils.

Trees stir from bare slumber.

Summer glows under warm sun

soaking dusty lawns.

Languorous days flow gently.

Sounds of merriment as glasses ring,

smoky barbecue, carefree chatter.

Autumn shortening days,

plants contract against frost.

Carpets of russet leaves lie

forewarn dark winter’s approach.

Storm and ice to come.

Through all the year

stands Glanmore.

Businesses: National Fire Museum of Power (Wales), Healthy Habits Café, Wicklow, Maltfield Riding School, Redcross, Bridge Street Books and Track One (Wicklow). Groups: Wicklow Writers and Shed Poets Individuals: Anne Ferris (TD), Helen Duffy, Avril Young, Charlie Burke, Conal Kavanagh (Councillor), Mary Boland, Anne Graham, John Graham, Joy Whittaker, George and Meta Whittaker, Liam Walsh, Edward Ryan, James Boland, Edward Ryan, Andy Boland, Cora Boland, Marie O’Brien, Philip Lynch, Michael Tinsley, Shirley McClure, Marin O’Donovan, Carol Boland, Margaret Kennedy, Tommy Dickenson, Bernie Walsh, Pat Moore, Peter Kelly, Philip Galvin, Pascal Moran, Liam Walsh, Catherine Graham, Helen Graham, Kevin Graham, Charlie Kavanagh, Angela Nolan, Kerri Gill, Patricia Gill. Space Inside Arts Magazine is published quarterly by volunteers: Carol Boland and Anne Graham. Distribution: Evert Beerda, Tess Doyle and others. Live Nights: Carol Boland, Pascal Moran, Kerri Gill, Anne Graham, Cait Breathnach, John Graham, Maureen O’Donovan

http://thespaceinsdie.blogspot.com T:0851138367 E:spaceinside@hotmail.com

Published by Boland Press Printed by Conway Media

FRIENDS of The Space Inside 2012/13

Help us to keep afloat by becoming a Friend for only €40 with a chance to win €100 in our 9 monthly draws. You can also donate €3 (or more) online at thespaceinside.blogspot.com. The Space Inside is grateful to Wicklow Town Council and Friends for making the journal and Live Nights a reality. This project was initially assisted by Wicklow Rural Partnership Ltd under the European Union

LEADER +/National Development Plan 2000-2006.

Space Inside Arts

Live Nights

First Tuesday in the month, from October to June, the Space Inside Arts runs a free evening of music, dance and poetry in Wicklow Sailing Club, South Quay, Wicklow Town. Doors opens 8pm