Barry O’Rourke

December 12th, 1983 – December 31st, 2020

On Thursday, December 31st, our family suffered a tragic loss with the passing of Barry O’Rourke. Barry was Sinead’s loving husband and devoted father to both Ronan and Ada. Those who have spent time at our studios will know Barry well as he would often visit, shooting hoops in the yard, popping his head in the kitchen for a chat or bite to eat, often engaging in conversation with our guests… more

Knockroe Passage Tomb

Knockroe Passage Tomb

Winter Solstice at Knockroe Passage Tomb in Kilkenny Today is the winter solstice and celebrations on the shortest day of the year are particularly associated with the Celtic tradition when druids would cut the mistletoe that grew on oak trees and offer it as a blessing each year. In Celtic mythology, there is a Dark […]

Hoagie & Cheesesteak Rolls

Recipe: Hoagie & Cheesesteak Rolls As a native Philadelphian, Cow House Co-Director Frank Abruzzese has a particular affinity for the Hoagie and Cheesesteak sandwiches of his childhood. To this day, his first stop on any visit home begins with a cheesesteak from the iconic John’s Roast Pork. Anyone familiar with these delicious sandwiches from Philly […]

Mathilde-Ganancia

Mathilde Ganancia

Community update with Mathilde Ganancia We first met Mathilde Ganancia in 2014 as one of five artists for our autumn residency that year. Since then, Mathilde has returned several times for both shorter residencies and to teach during our summer art program Art on the Farm. It is a genuine pleasure anytime she returns, most […]

Fire Station Artists’ Studios

Fire Station Artists’ Studios, located in Dublin’s northeast inner city, is a vital institution within the Irish art world. For many emerging and mid-career artists, an extended residency in one of their twelve studios provides support to embark on ambitious projects. Having opened its doors more than 25 years ago, it has gained due recognition […]

On Chorus

Friend of Cow House and sound artist Christopher Steenson is launching his latest project On Chorus today, Monday 16 November 2020. For the next two weeks, his project will use Iarnród Éireann train station PA systems across Ireland to play the sound of birdsong to the general public from 8:00 am to 9:00 am, every day, for two weeks, […]

New Scholarship Opportunities

We are delighted to announce substantial new scholarship opportunities for FieldWorks, our 12-week gap year program, and Art on the Farm, our 25-day teen summer program. Moving forward, for each session, we now award three different forms of financial support, a portfolio scholarship, and two different need-based awards. All scholarship applicants must submit a portfolio […]

Lamb Barbacoa Tacos & Elote

Recipe: Lamb Barbacoa Tacos & Elote We started making this recipe at Cow House after Frank received a phone call from our dear friend and curator Karla Sanchez. Karla, originally from Mexico City, asked Frank to give a cooking demonstration during her then annual Zorro Festival in Wexford Town. Frank loves cooking and had been […]

Supported Summer Residency: Week 4

Supported Summer Residency: Week 4 This is the final update from our Supported Summer Residency. In addition to the four wonderful artists, we hosted at Cow House, Co-Directors Rosie O’Gorman and Frank Abruzzese traveled to photographer Miriam O’Connor’s family farm, where she has been developing her artistic practice alongside her daily responsibilities caring for her […]

Supported Summer Residency: Week 3

Supported Summer Residency: Week 3 This is the third update from our Supported Summer Residency. For all of us at Cow House, it has been a tremendous experience thus far. One aspect that has been particularly enjoyable for us is the opportunity to become more well acquainted with many artists we’ve admired from afar for […]

Supported Summer Residency Week 2

Supported Summer Residency: Week 2

Supported Summer Residency: Week 2 This is the second update from our Supported Summer Residency. Each week we are highlighting the artworks being donated by each participating artist. This post highlights the artists and their works from week 2. Colin Martin ‘Dog (Motion Capture)’ depicts a dog in motion capture suit that is commonly used in […]

Supported Summer Residency: Week 1

Supported Summer Residency: Week 1 We are in the midst of running our Supported Summer Residency and the time seems to be flying by. A crucial aspect of this residency has been the mutual support from both our generous donors and the artists participating in the program. We would like to share the wonderful artworks […]

Materials Matter

Last week we had the pleasure of hosting artists Clare Breen, Mary Conroy, and Laura Ní Fhlaibhín for three consecutive days. This short residency was our first time hosting anyone after an extended closure, and it was great to see the studio once again brimming with activity. We are particularly fond of this collaboration as their […]

Caramelized Orange Upside-Down Cake

Recipe: Caramelized Orange Upside-Down Cake We started to make our caramelized orange upside-down cake at Cow House last year during Art on the Farm, our summer art program for high school students. Caitriona noticed the students weren’t eating as many oranges, and we had a few extra in the fruit basked about to go off. […]

Dún Aonghasa

One of our absolute favorite places to visit is the prehistoric hill fort of Dún Aonghasa on Inis Mor, the largest of the three Aran Islands just off the coast of Galway. Perched in a stunning location at the edge of a 300ft high cliff, Dún Aonghasa is a breathtaking place for its natural beauty […]

Maria Hinds

Community update with Maria Hinds Maria Hinds is one of our dearest friends. She was instrumental in the early development of the design language for Cow House and has provided almost all of our print and web design since the beginning. She was also one of our first residency artists back in 2008, and her […]

Hainanese Chicken Rice

Hainanese Chicken Rice

Recipe: Hainanese Chicken Rice We have been making this dish at Cow House since the very beginning. Frank loves food and cooking for people, but when the studios first opened, he didn’t have much expertise in preparing dishes from the Asian continent. His background is Italian American, and he spent some time in New Mexico […]

FieldWorks 2019: Student Artwork

In 2019 we launched FieldWorks, our 12-week gap year program for students pursuing creative careers. In many ways, students and instructors alike, lept into this experiment together. It felt like our first year of Art on the Farm, learning so much along the way. At times there were challenges, continually assessing the merits of each […]