This article is from page 14 of the 2012-04-17 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 14 JPG
THE first PhD ever awarded on Clare soil will be handed out in Ballyvaughan this Wednesday as the Burren College of Art breaks new ground for education in the county.
Having studied in North Clare for almost five years, Eileen Hutton has been giving the honour of receiving the first PhD ever awarded on Clare soil. Her work is heavily linked with nature and she has used material produced with the help of Burren birds and bees as part of her PhD.
President and cofounder of the Burren College of Art, Mary Hawkes Greene, says the conferring will be a big day for the college.
“The awarding of the first PhD in Studio Art at Burren College of Art is a significant milestone not only for the recipient Eileen Hutton, but also for the college itself,” she said.
“The location of the college has been integral to the focus of Eileen’s work, investigating reciprocal relationships between artists and the natural environment. Her sculptural collaborations with the blue tits and honeybees in the Burren has not only strengthened their natural habitats but has provided valuable insight into the positive ways environmental art can impact on its surroundings.
“We are delighted that the first PhD studies conducted at the college have focused so specifically and benefitted immeasurably from the Burren itself, the very reason for the college’s existence.”
The PhD itself will be awarded by the National University of Ireland, Galway – who are the Burren College’s academic partners. Eileen’s final exhibition at the Burren College of Art was entitled ‘Being in the Land’ was included a series of shaped honey combs formed by Burren bees and hexagonal birds nests made by Helen and 20 families of local blue tits.
“I wanted to interact with the ecology of the Burren and ask what is ecology and what is biodiversity in the Burren context. I am aware of the different focuses that people have in the Burren between the eco-tourists and the farmers, the work that BurrenBeo is doing and also BurrenLIFE,” said Eileen.
“There are a lot of people trying to develop a contemporary relationship with the Burren that is beneficial both the people and the environment.”