The programme featured local artists from every genre – music, film, visual arts, literature etc. talking about their work and the projects they had planned. It also included discussions and topics pertinent to artists e.g., the role of the artist in society, sustainability and the arts, writing up grant applications etc. ‘The Gallery’ also ran a weekly Notice Board where events, residencies, grants and exhibitions being run by the local authorities and other agencies were highlighted. Thee radio show was not just pitched at people making money from their art and so it explored the intrinsic role of art within the community through interviews with youth groups and community arts schemes. In this way it had a broad appeal and through presenter, John MacKenna’s relaxed and personable interviewing style ‘The Gallery’, provided interesting and engaging content for a broad range of listeners.
This show was originally broadcast between the end of March and middle of June 2021, KCLR 96FM – the local radio station for Carlow and Kilkenny. These programmes are also on the KCLR website and so will continue their life there and here through the Kilkenny Arts Office blog. This added value is one of the many positive outcomes of the radio series which also served to keep arts high on the agenda during the lock-down restrictions of the pandemic which so badly affected many local artists at the time.
Click here to listen back at your leisure.
The Gallery’ was funded through the Creative Ireland programme and was a collaboration between the Arts Offices at Kilkenny and Carlow County Councils and KCLR. It was presented by writer and dramatist John MacKenna.
