In the News..

Galway International Arts Festival and University of Galway are this year marking 16-years of their long-running partnership. More than 60,000 visitors are expected to attend shows, performances, talks, exhibitions and events at 10 venues on the University’s city centre campus, from the Bailey Allen Hall, to lecture theatres, to the O’Donoghue Theatre and the Bank of Ireland Theatre. Fourteen students are taking part in this year’s SELECTED programme - a whirlwind summer academy for emerging artists, theatre makers, curators and producers, and a key part of the University’s long-running Education Partnership with Galway International Arts Festival. The students of drama, English and theatre studies will get unrivalled behind the scenes experience and access to festival-making, including exclusive meetings with artists and producers. Galway International Arts Festival Chief Executive, John Crumlish, said: “The partnership with the University of Galway has been very important to the Festival. It has been a key contributor to our development over the last number of years, facilitating the expansion of the Festival's presence and providing support for the development of new Irish work.” University of Galway President, Professor David Burn, said: “The sheer breadth and variety of the opportunities presented by Galway International Arts Festival is something that we treasure. We are thrilled to see the festival and our partnership grow year on year. Our academics, students and staff help to make it what it is, and also get huge benefit for this long and growing relationship. We are delighted to see this year, yet again, tens of thousands of people enjoying events across the city and coming to our campus to enjoy performances and experiences with creativity at their core.” Rena Bryson, SELECTED manager and a graduate of the programme, said: “The SELECTED programme offers a unique opportunity for students to make that transition from study to the industry while learning from and networking with industry leaders. And seeing so much work, whether as an ambassador or an audience member, over the two weeks is sure to inspire and offer new perspectives. It’s a group of exceptional young people who often after leaving Selected go on to create work together and that’s what the programme is really about offering the support, knowledge and inspiration for the next generation of artists in Galway.” University of Galway and Galway International Arts Festival launched the Education Partnership in 2010. The collaboration is built around a shared commitment to creativity, the arts and showcasing bold, contemporary, new work, with public engagement and research and learning central to the mission. With 2026 the International Year of the Volunteer, University of Galway is proud to sponsor the Galway International Arts Festival Volunteer Programme as well as hosting the Volunteer Hub on campus. More than 500 volunteers, including students, are taking part and playing a key role in events across the city and county - welcoming audiences and the 40 nationalities taking part in this year’s programme, stewarding at the Heineken Big Top, ushering at performances, invigilating at galleries, assisting at street spectacle events, and acting as Festival Ambassadors and Green Ambassadors. University of Galway also hosts the Festival’s acclaimed First Thought Talks series, bringing together leading journalists, writers and university experts to explore a range of contemporary issues, from falling fertility rates and its societal implications to Irish neutrality to the affordability of home retrofitting. Speakers include renowned journalists and authors Bel Trew, Fintan O’Toole, Marion McKeon, Andrew O’Hagan, Lara Marlowe, Ben Brantley, Sally Hayden and Nick Maynard, alongside a number of distinguished University of Galway academics and researchers.  University of Galway will once again host a series of post-show talks to explore the inspirations behind each of the theatre productions.  University of Galway is also home to GIAF’s largest venue - the Heineken® Big Top in Fisheries Field which this year features a standout programme of international and Irish artists including the Patti Smith Quartet, Sophie Ellis-Bextor with special guest Kate Nash, James, The Saw Doctors, and, in an Irish exclusive this year The Flaming Lips with special guests Mercury Rev, who will all bring unforgettable live performances to the Festival. In a special double bill, Emeli Sandé and James Morrison share the stage, while Irish acts Bell X1, Block Rockin Beats and Cian Ducrot complete a vibrant Heineken® Big Top line-up. University of Galway’s O’Donoghue Centre will also play host to ‘Assembly’, Ireland’s Pavilion from the Venice Biennale of Architecture. The installation is an interdisciplinary collaboration between architects, a composer, a poet and a woodworker and it is described as a prototype for a structure that facilitates non-hierarchical communication between strangers. Vinyl Hours will again be hosted by university academic, Tiernan Henry who will take us on musical journeys, exploring the inspirations that shaped the music choices of guests, Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips and Katie Bel of Just Mustard. Ends

University of Galway is opening its doors to students, staff, alumni and the public with a special open day for trips down memory lane at the James Hardiman Library.  The unique opportunity is being offered as the University prepares to say goodbye to the James Hardiman Library, after more than half a century of service.  The open day takes place on Saturday, July 25th and runs from 11am-3pm.  Visitors are also being asked to share the stories that made it so much more than just a building and place for studying and learning.  Anyone who is interested in coming along for a visit full of fond memories, nostalgia and fun can register online in advance at https://www.universityofgalway.ie/alumni-friends/upcomingalumnievents/slan-jameshardimanlibraryopenday/  University of Galway Librarian Monica Crump said: “As we prepare to move from the James Hardiman Library to the new Dr Karen Guinee Library in 2027, we invite University of Galway alumni, former staff and the people of Galway to come and visit the James Hardiman Library one last time on July 25th between 11am and 3pm.   “Come and revisit your favourite seat in the Library, rekindle your memories of browsing the shelves and say one last goodbye to the James Hardiman Library. We’d love to hear your memories of your time in the Library - the late-night study sessions, the friendships and romances that blossomed over shared notes, the stressful deadlines, the eureka moment, the laughter, the procrastination, and the unforgettable moments in between. “Help us honour the library and the role it has played in university life over the last 53 years by joining us on this day of celebration.”  The open day is planned as the University looks ahead to the opening of the new Dr Karen Guinee Library in 2027. The new library is named in honour of Dr Karen Guinee, a gifted and compassionate medicine graduate who completed her education and training as a doctor with distinction. The commemorative naming follows a significant philanthropic gift from the Michael Guinee Charitable Foundation, which is also supporting the establishment of a new scholarship for medical students in memory of Dr Guinee.  Ends  

Cuirfear fáilte in Ollscoil na Gaillimhe roimh mhic léinn, an fhoireann, alumni agus an pobal chuig lá oscailte speisialta ina mbeifear ag caitheamh súil siar ar bhóithrín na smaointe sa leabharlann.  Tá an deis uathúil seo againn anois mar go bhfuilimid ag ullmhú le bogadh as Leabharlann Shéamais Uí Argadáin, tar éis breis is leathchéad bliain ar an bhfód.  Beidh an lá oscailte ar siúl Dé Sathairn, an 25 Iúil idir 11am agus 3pm.  Iarrtar ar chuairteoirí freisin a gcuid cuimhní cinn a roinnt linn ar an áit ar chuir siad barr feabhais ar a gcuid oideachais agus ina raibh neart spraoi acu chomh maith.  Is féidir le daoine ar spéis leo teacht ar cuairt agus cuimhneamh ar an bhfoghlaim agus ar an spraoi clárú ar líne roimh ré ag https://www.universityofgalway.ie/alumni-friends/upcomingalumnievents/slan-jameshardimanlibraryopenday/  Dúirt Leabharlannaí Ollscoil na Gaillimhe, Monica Crump: “Agus muid ag ullmhú le bogadh ó Leabharlann Shéamais Uí Argadáin go dtí Leabharlann nua an Dr Karen Guinee in 2027, tugaimid cuireadh d’iar-mhic léinn agus d’iar-chomhaltaí foirne Ollscoil na Gaillimhe chomh maith le muintir na Gaillimhe teacht chuig Leabharlann Shéamais Uí Argadáin den uair dheireanach an 25 Iúil idir 11am agus 3pm.   “Tar ar cuairt an athuair ar an spota ab ansa leat sa Leabharlann, tabhair chun cuimhne laethanta a chaith tú brabhsáil na seilfeanna agus fág slán le Leabharlann Shéamais Uí Argadáin.  Ba bhreá linn dá roinnfeadh sibh bhur gcuimhní cinn linn – na seisiúin staidéir a mhair go dtí amach san oíche, an cairdeas agus na caidrimh ar tháinig bláthú orthu nuair a bhí nótaí lámhscríofa á mbabhtáil, na spriocanna diana, na nóiméid inspioráide, an gáire, an mhoilleadóireacht agus gach eachtra eile a thagann chun cuimhne. “Bí inár dteannta agus ómós á léiriú againn don leabharlann agus don ról a bhí aici i saol na hollscoile le 53 bliain anuas.”  Tá an lá oscailte beartaithe agus an Ollscoil ag súil le hoscailt Leabharlann nua an Dr Karen Guinee in 2027. Ainmníodh an leabharlann nua in ómós an Dr Karen Guinee, céimí leighis cumasach agus cineálta a thug faoina cuid oideachais agus oiliúna mar dhochtúir le díograis agus dúthracht. Cinneadh an Leabharlann a ainmniú in ómós di i ndiaidh dúinn tabhartas flaithiúil daonchairdiúil a fháil ó Fhondúireacht Charthanachta Michael Guinee, atá ag tacú le scoláireacht nua do mhic léinn leighis a bhunú i gcuimhne an Dr Guinee chomh maith.  Críoch