Youth Ecology Art Festival
- For All Ages, Designed by Young Artists

Butler Gallery’s Youth Ecology Art Festival is a programme of activities celebrating all things ecology in Kilkenny. The programme was created by the young folk of Youth Ecology Art, for everyone! All activities are free.

Programme of Activities.

Saturday 1st November | Learning Centre.
11.00am – 12.00pm and 12.00pm – 1.00pm
Biodiversity Block Printing with Michelle McMahon from PrintBlock Callan.
Children 5-12 years. Bring your old clothes and fabrics and make anew with nature block prints with Michelle McMahon. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Accompanying parents/guardians don’t need to book a ticket. Free booking below.

Saturday 1st November Repair Fair | Main Gallery | 12.00pm - 4.00pm.
Celebrating sustainable fashion! Drop in to the Repair Fair with any clothes or textiles in need of repair or alterations. Learn some new techniques to give your clothes a longer, more sustainable life.

Techniques include: Hand sewing, Machine sewing, Embroidery, Alterations Darning.

Supported by

Shoppe

Shoppe is a new grassroots, pop-up project encouraging sustainable collective creativity in response to the fast fashion industry. At its core, Shoppe is about coming together to make together—to chat, skill-share and imagine new possibilities for what we wear and how we create. We believe in the joy of making slowly and thoughtfully, rather than fast production for profit.

Kilkenny Arts Office Embroidery Sampler

Learn new embroidery techniques and contribute to Kilkenny Arts Office’s Community Embroidery. Facilitated by artists Ailis Feehan and Ber Roberts.Free drop-in.

Saturday 1st November | 5.00pm – 6.30pm
Ecology Art Table Quiz.
5.00pm – 6.30pm
Test your grasp of all things Ecology Art in the cosy comfort of the Wild Flower Café
at Butler Gallery. No entry fee – just win! Hosted by our very own young folk from Youth Ecology Art. Prizes for winners and losers! A maximum 4 people per table. Free Booking Below.

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Sunday 2nd November
Dancing Ecology: Family Movement Workshop with Cindy Cummings | Main Gallery
11.00am – 12.00pm
Age: Children aged 5 – 9 and adults of all ages.
Dancing Ecology is an exploration of the relationship between all living things.
Experience movement through the senses, explore the space around us, and let
your little ones lead the way. This is a child and adult partnered workshop. Choldren must be accompanied by an adult, maximum
one child per adult. Free Booking Below.

Sunday 2nd November
Youth Ecology Art Exhibition | Learning Centre
12.00pm – 4.00pm
Drop in to explore a collection of artworks from Youth Ecology Art. Made by our young members in collaboration with artists and ecologists since 2021.
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About Youth Ecology Art

Youth Ecology Art is a programme for 13 to 17-year-olds that has been active at Butler Gallery since 2021. Through weekend workshops, mid-term projects, summers schools, day trips and mini residencies, it offers young people interested in art, ecology, biodiversity and sustainability the opportunity to work with and learn from professional artists. The programme is delivered with social inclusion at its core, and all activities are free.

In 2025 Butler Gallery's Youth Ecology Art recruited a team of young people to programme the Ecology Festival at Butler Gallery. The Young Festival Team have
created this weekend of events drawing inspiration from years of working with artists and ecologists from Kilkenny and beyond! A huge thank you for their commitment
and for all the support from the Butler Gallery team too!
If you are, or know a young person who might be interested in getting involved in Youth Ecology Art, then please get in touch with the programme coordinator Hannah McCormick at [email protected]