ART

By Nadim Sadek, Chief Islander.

"We hold an annual Artists Week on our beautiful island off the West Coast of Ireland, in Clew Bay, Co. Mayo. Here, the mighty Atlantic, rolling in from America, first greets land, sometimes bringing a mischievous gale to shake us from our beds, sometimes tenderly caressing us with barely a whispering wind in tow.

Here, we bear witness to and celebrate a collection of beautiful thoughts, expressed as art. And the thoughts have shared "DNA" -- they arise from living on the island, in a residential artists' communion, inspired by the thought of "Life Vividly Lived".

From our first moment of stepping onto Inish Turk Beg, I, and my family, have been intoxicated. We loved the journey from mainland orthodoxy to island liberty; we loved the old pier which silently recounted tales of families coming, going, waxing and waning; we loved the overgrown plants which proceeded with their own plans in life; we loved the derelict cottage which cried out for company; we loved the scale of it all, intimate enough to know, big enough to lose yourself; we loved the way each coast had a different character and murmured, whined or shouted its virtues; we loved the panoramic views from the top which simply told us to stop, look and forever remember; we spoke of Swallows, Amazons, boats, ponies, apples, pears, adventures; our eyes glistened, our imaginations ran, and our souls ached with the prospect of lives and times aboard the good ship Inish Turk Beg.

Inish Turk Beg has always exercised and thrilled our minds with experiences and plans; our rooms have filled with eclectic conversations; our beds have sighed under exuberant but exhausted limbs; our waters have rung out with the sound of happy adventures. Whatever else has been going on, we’ve never hesitated to jump on board for another passionate escapade. Sometimes, we’ve just lolled by the fire, at peace.

And so we have come to talk about the island as a place being at the centre of a world where Life’s Vividly Lived. We think of Inish Turk Beg as a parallel universe, where our experiences are intensified and our lives amplified. Each chapter there is somehow super-oxygenated, with colours, sounds, smells and feelings brilliantly etched into our minds. Inish Turk Beg, simply, offers everyone lucky enough to enjoy its charms, a Lungful of Life.

It takes a lot of words to capture the unique spirit of Inish Turk Beg. Art inspired by the island is intended to do so much better than my few words here. By throwing open our doors and inviting in some of the most exciting artistic talents living today, we hope to capture the essence of the island in other, beautiful, unique ways. Through their endeavours and with their unique gifts, the residential artists of Inish Turk Beg vivify the island. Each artist brings a unique eye, mind and medium, capturing their very own facet of Life Vividly Lived. And these works will return to Inish Turk Beg after being seen at exhibition, to form a permanent collection.

Finally, then, we look forward to years and flows of beautiful work -- stilled in our pages, but on Inish Turk Beg, alive."