Quiet determination -- I think that's what he had.  He was passionate about the Irish language, Irish history and culture, the Irish way of life.

Above, oil painting of Patrick Pearse at Ros Muc, Connemara

He saw what the English education system was doing, trying to stamp…

"Tinteán Tréigthe no.32", 42 x 42cm, oil painting on canvas by Eoin Mac Lochlainn, 2017

It’s Irish Language Week in Ireland this week so I've written my post in Irish. But please scroll down to read the English translation down below, if you wish. 

Tá scéailín deas agam daoibh faoin bpictiúr seo ag barr.…

My mother (God rest her) must have taken this photo. It was in Connemara and they were on their honeymoon… It was a long time ago, but we still had a copy in a dusty old photo album at home in Ranelagh. It was lovely to see it projected onto the gable end of Pearse’s Cottage in Ros Muc last weekend.

It’s a long story. But maybe today, I’ll just tell you about the short film that I produced as part of my artist’s…

Tinteán Tréigthe no.19, oil on canvas, 2016

Now if you’re searching for your great grandmother’s cottage in the country, you can follow the map to a certain extent, but, in the end, you just have to ask someone. So, after driving a crooked mile up a crooked mucky roadeen, searching for the dot beside the ‘S’ of…

(Scroll down to read the English translation of this post.)

Bhuel, bhí sé go h-iontach a bheith i láthair i Ros Muc i mbliana le hÉirí amach na Cásca a chomóradh, céad bhliain níos déanaí.  Bhí brat na hÉireann ag foluain i ngach gáirdín agus cuma álainn ar an cheantar ar fad.  Bhí gach sórt…

The Gods were smiling on us that day, long ago when we travelled out to the windswept island of Sceilg Mhichíl (or Skellig Michael), eleven kilometres off the coast of Kerry.  What a special place!  Sacred. Unique. Awesome.

It is not known when the monks first arrived on the…

What would you expect to see inside this old overgrown cottage on the side of the road in Donegal? Would you just pass by or would you try and get in to have a look?  Well, I was passing this cottage every day a few years ago until eventually, my curiosity got the better of me.

It wasn’t that difficult to enter, despite the tangle of brambles…

Well, you just have to listen to Davy Spillane's music before you answer my question. Here's a short video that I created of my recent solo exhibition in Áras Éanna on…

Did you know that there is a tunnel running under Parnell Square in Dublin's city centre? Indeed, if the truth be told, there is probably a network of tunnels down there. How do I know?  Well, believe it or not, there’s an entrance to this tunnel under no. 5 Cavendish Row, where Olivier Cornet…

I sometimes think that, when words fail, art can find expression for feelings that have no words.   And art is especially good for remembering those who have gone before...

I visited the studio of Lorcan Walshe recently. A few years ago he had an exhibition entitled “The Artefacts…

Not many people know about Uisneach but it really is a special place. Situated in the very centre of the island of Ireland, in County Westmeath, it has been referred to as the navel of Ireland. At its centre is Aill na Míreann (the stone of the divisions, seen above) and this…

Yes indeed, what to do?  After the festivities are festivitied - after all the ceremonies, the lighting of candles, the opening of presents, the cooking and the eating…

Yes, believe it or not, I saw the oldest surviving manuscript in Ireland. It’s called the Cathach (meaning the Battle Book) and it was used by the O’Donnell Clan as a protection or talisman when going into battle.

Because of its fragile state, it is rarely shown…

The Rock of Dunamaise - my cousins tell me that they used to go on picnics there in the old days and, if you knew the place, you’d understand why. It’s not that high, maybe 50 metres or so above the Midlands plain - but it’s got a ruined castle on the top! Such an exciting place…

This is a photo I took on my recent trip to Georgia and Armenia.  This stone cross was in a "cave monastery" in Geghard, Armenia.  The monastery buildings were actually carved out of the cliff face – as opposed to being built brick by brick.  

It was an amazing place…