• Picture This: Your National Visual Arts Guide- Future & Past

    April 15, 2016 - By 

    As we tentatively approach the summer galleries are beginning to launch their summer shows and draw their spring endeavours to a close. This looking ahead while checking back is one of the key themes across the exhibitions chosen for this edition of Picture This. The future of Ireland, her art and the wider contemporary art landscape is discussed in shows such as 2116 in Cork, EVA International in Limerick and Phototropism in Dublin. Casting our minds back forms the centrepiece of the Peter Dressler show in Belfast as the work or the late German photographer takes centre stage, this revisionary…

  • Bookmark: JR Ryall (Pastry Chef at Ballymaloe House)

    July 8, 2015 - By 

    In this installment of Bookmark we head to the famous Ballymaloe House in Cork to meet pastry chef JR Ryall, to discuss the cookery books which helped to shape his culinary art and culture. Photos by Melanie Mullan. The Ballymaloe Cookbook – Myrtle Allen Myrtle Allen’s seminal book, first published in 1977, contains the collection of recipes from which I trained when I began working at Ballymaloe House. This book is full of witty and eccentric stories that highlight the fun and mischief, the highs and lows and also the challenges of running a restaurant kitchen. It captures a particular time…