New creative activities online

A Cork-based arts gallery is opening up to the world with an online initiative designed to meet the challenges posed by Covid-19.

Although the University College Cork campus has been closed, the team at the Glucksman gallery will be working on Creativity at Home - an initiative that provides daily art activities for people online during gallery hours. The activities will provide those at home with a creative outlet during a time of social distancing.

Every day, the Glucksman team will share new art activities on their website, and through their Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts. Video tutorials will be provided through the gallery’s dedicated YouTube channel.

Participants are encouraged to share their own artworks, which in turn will lead to the creation of online galleries to celebrate the imagination and creativity of anyone who gets involved.

The idea has already received praise from The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon.

“This is a fantastic initiative and it’s a really positive example of resilient adaptation in the face of the difficult circumstances that we currently find ourselves in,” Ben Mulligan, the Arts Council's Head of Visual Arts said.

Glucksman Director Fiona Kearney said;

“We want to help people to get creative at home and each day we will have different activities to do with easy to access art materials, or items that you would have around the house”.

UCC President Prof Patrick O'Shea said;

"We have endeavoured to move work and study off-campus and online since the introduction of measures to battle the spread of Covid-19. However UCC has always prided itself on the extracurricular experience it delivers to its community.

"As UCC President and a member of the Glucksman board, I'm delighted to see ingenuity like this in the face of a global challenge. This initiative plays a role in transferring the UCC experience from campus into homes," he said.

Use the #CreativityAtHome hashtag, and the Glucksman’s social media accounts to stay in touch with this positive way of experiencing art encounters in your home.