Poet Mary O’Malley will open the Wests’ exhibition Fold at 3pm as the second exhibition of this year’s Oughterard Courthouse Summer Arts Programme (OCAP )
Fold features work by Margaret Irwin West, Katharine West, Richard West and Manon West.
At its heart, FOLD is an exhibition about transformation. The idea of the fold suggests change, movement and the bringing together of different elements. Each artist will explore this in their own manner; through painting, printing, woodturning and ceramics.
Margaret Irwin West brings a long and distinguished career spanning more than seven decades. Her significant contribution to Irish cultural life was formally recognised in 2019 with her election to Aosdána, Ireland’s premier academy of creative artists. Deeply influenced by the Connemara landscape, her work explores the relationship between structure and environment, drawing on human interaction with ancient landscapes.
In April this year, Margaret marked her 100th birthday with an exhibition in the United Arts Club in Dublin.
Katharine West works primarily in ceramics, engaging with the human body, archetypal form and the material language of landscape and seascape. Her practice explores the relationship between matter, memory and transformation. She has exhibited widely in Ireland and internationally, and her work is held in major public and private collections. A member of the International Academy of Ceramics and a founding member of Irish Contemporary Ceramics, she is also Programme Chair of BA in Art at ATU Galway, where she lectures in ceramics, fine art and creative education.
Richard West began woodturning in 2015, exploring the idea that fallen trees can be given a renewed life through transformation of form, while retaining their original essence. Having explored wood sculpture during his studies at National College of Art & Design and IADT, Richard’s work has attracted significant attention online, and in 2025 he received the Leitrim Design House National Design, Craft & Art Award. He will present his first solo exhibition at Leitrim Design House in August 2026.
Manon West graduated from ATU Galway with a BA in Contemporary Art in 2022 and has already exhibited widely, including in 2025 at the Royal British Society of Artists Exhibition and the London Art Biennale. She is the recipient of the Collins Plastic Prize and is a member of the Dublin Sketching and Painting Club. Her residencies include programmes in Ireland, Finland, Iceland and Sweden, where she is currently based at Konstepidemin Artist Residency. Her work focuses on figurative painting and surrealism, often drawing on personal environment and lived experience.
FOLD will be officially opened by Mary O’Malley. Born in Connemara, Mary is a member of Aosdána and one of Ireland’s most distinguished contemporary poets. Her work has received international recognition, and in 2012 she was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Galway.
Fold is part of OCAP’s 2025 Summer Art Programme, supported by Galway County Council and the Oughterard Courthouse Conservation & Heritage Company.
The exhibition runs from July 3 to July 12. Opening hours are Monday to Saturday, 10am-5pm, and Sunday, 11am-5pm. Admission is free and all are welcome.
