11th August
Agnes Obel with Cian Nugent
St Canice’s Cathedral
Harmonic presents Agnes Obel who can weave a spell with little more than a voice, a piano, and an array of deceptively simple melodies. Supported by Cian Nugent.
Mari Kvien Brunvoll
Cleere’s - Festival Hub
A genuine original with a captivating voice that straddles jazz, electro pop and acoustic blues with ease.
Laoise O’Brien
The Parade Tower
A special concert celebrating all things avian, with early music specialist Laoise O'Brien and some of Ireland's finest musicians from both classical and traditional worlds
Tobias Wolff & David Vann
The Watergate Theatre
David Vann makes a welcome return to the festival in the company of one of the greatest of contemporary American writers, Tobias Wolff
Star Boy
Kilkenny Ormonde Hotel - Kilbride Suite
Joe Brennan presents this delightful early years theatre performance, telling the tale of a small boy who just loves to explore
Title & Deed
Barnstorm Theatre
Gare St Lazare Players Ireland are back with the world premiere of Title and Deed, a new piece specially-written for the company by acclaimed American playwright Will Eno
Kaleidoscope
Design Centre
This laidback salon-style night comes to Kilkenny for two nights of music, song and surprise, mixing the classical with the cutting edge
The Big Deal
Barnstorm Theatre
Una McKevitt returns to Kilkenny with the extraordinary real-life story of two women who knew from a very young age that they were born into the wrong bodies
Paper Craft Laboratory
The National Craft Gallery
Explore the art of bookmaking, shadow puppetry, jewellery-making and more in the Crafts Council's free paper art workshops for children
Solas Supreme Workshop
Butler Gallery
Come along to these outdoor children's workshops using household objects to create fantastical sculptures
Other Selections - Blackbird Gallery
Blackbird Gallery
The Blackbird Gallery presents a selection of works by three emerging artists
Other Selections - Grennan Mill Craft School - Maire Gartland
Grennan Mill
Grennan Mill Craft School welcomes six Irish artists/crafts people showing an exciting new range of work in a wide variety of media
Other Selections - Grennan Mill Craft School - Trini Kenny
Grennan Mill
Grennan Mill Craft School welcomes six Irish artists/crafts people showing an exciting new range of work in a wide variety of media
Other Selections - Grennan Mill Craft School - Nicola Brown
Grennan Mill
Grennan Mill Craft School welcomes six Irish artists/crafts people showing an exciting new range of work in a wide variety of media
Other Selections - Grennan Mill Craft School - Kirsty O’Keeffe
Grennan Mill
Grennan Mill Craft School welcomes six Irish artists/crafts people showing an exciting new range of work in a wide variety of media
Other Selections - Grennan Mill Craft School - Clive Nunn
Grennan Mill
Grennan Mill Craft School welcomes six Irish artists/crafts people showing an exciting new range of work in a wide variety of media
Other Selections - Grennan Mill Craft School - Brendan Brennan
Grennan Mill
Grennan Mill Craft School welcomes six Irish artists/crafts people showing an exciting new range of work in a wide variety of media
Other Selections - Niall Harkin
Berkley Gallery
This exhibition, Votive Offerings, presents the fruits of two years’ work with sheet bronze
Modified Expression
The National Craft Gallery
Tear, fold, cut, read, write, print, and colour: Modified Expression, this year’s CRAFT strand exhibition, is all about books.
Strand 2 - Ian Burns
Butler Gallery
Ian Burns’s sculptures and installations investigate the expectations of art viewing with wry humor and audience engaging invention.
Other Selections - On the Surface
The Courtyard Bar and Grill
A joint exhibition by artists Bernadette Kiely and Paul Mosse. While Kiely’s and Mosse’s work appears very different on the surface, there is a slowly emerging resonance at play.
Strand 2 - We Are All in This Together
The Watergate Theatre
Exhibiting artists: Maeve Coulter, Sylvia Hemmingway, Emma Hogan, Alé Mercado and Aiseling Noone.
Strand 2 - Rachel Dickson & Alison Lowry
Kilkenny County Council Arts Office
Kilkenny County Council Arts Office presents this joint exhibition of ceramics and glass from two emerging Irish makers: Rachel Dickson and Alison Lowry.
Festival Trail
Gather a group of intrepid explorers to discover Kilkenny on foot, following our ‘treasure hunt’ style Festival Trail
The Three Sisters
Kieran Street
View colourful street decorations in Kieran Street made by local volunteers of all ages.
Request Programme
Acclaimed Cork-based theatre company Corcadorca presents an intimate show staged in a real apartment and starring IFTA-winning actress Eileen Walsh.
![Other Selections - Daithi O hUallachain [David Holohan]](/content/images/sized/daithi_ohuallachain_02-220x120.jpg)
Other Selections - Daithi O hUallachain [David Holohan]
Kitchen Corridor - Kilkenny Castle
An exhibition of Daithi's recent paintings, full of light and vibrancy
Other Selections - KCAT - Mary Cody
L’Arche Cafe
Sky, Stones, Sea features work inspired by famous beauty spots in the Irish landscape
Other Selections - Lucy McKenna
Kilkenny Castle Park
This installation in Kilkenny Castle Park explores the darker side of the human psyche
Other Selections - Ceann
Shankill Castle
Ceann 2011 offers a visual feast in the historic setting of Shankill Castle
Other Selections - Made in Kilkenny
Butler House
This year’s exhibition - A Maker’s Journey: from inspiration to creation - traces the process of design, exploring the different elements each craftsperson takes into consideration to produce a finished piece
Other Selections - KCAT - The Empty Heat of Neanderthal Man
The Workhouse
An exhibition of recent sculpture work by five studio artists, comprising a range of materials such as stone, clay, wood, and mixed media
Liam O’Callaghan
Muniments Room, Kilkenny Castle
Playful – even satirical – installations, sculptures and photographs exposing the methods or mechanics in their construction.
Maria McKinney
Rothe House
Maria McKinney is concerned with ideas of boredom and escapism and works with familiar objects and materials.
Michael Thomas Murphy
Kenealy’s Art Shop
Michael Thomas Murphy’s work is multidimensional and multi-layered incorporating many materials.
Jacco Olivier
The Courthouse
Jacco Olivier fuses painting and filmmaking, continually reworking his paintings with generous, casual brushstrokes and photographing each stage of their development
Nick Miller
The Heritage Council
In this multimedia piece Nick Miller draws our attention to the tradition of the reclining nude in art.
Ann Craven
Castle Yard Gallery
Ann Craven is a compelling New York-based artist whose work focuses on recurring subject matter such as flowers, birds and the moon.
David Beattie
St. Mary’s Hall
An artist who encourages a sense of curiosity and exploration in his act of displacing quotidian objects.
Other Selections - Ross Stewart & Andrew Ludick
Castle Yard Gallery
An exhibition of work by ceramicist Andrew Ludick and painter Ross Stewart
Other Selections - Jerpoint Studio
Jerpoint Glass Studio
This group exhibition showcases the work of several 'hot glass divas', both up-and-coming artists and internationally-renowned names
Other Selections - The Workhouse Test
Dunnes Bakery
The Workhouse Test presents a collaborative exhibition that aims to establish links with international art spaces
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