With Honey

07/06/2026

It’s been a while! Hi! 👋 Almost three years ago, I took over the business end of Brennan's Kilteel Inn from my Dad and though I still have my Art clients, things have been quiet on that side of things.

Just “popping on” as the kids say, to ask you not to use AI for your content or posters. It’s tacky, awful and we can tell it straight away! There’s a movement of “if your poster/flyer is AI, I ain’t going”. Plus, it’s doing very nice people out of their jobs and destroying the planet with its water usage. Use apps like Canva to make it yourself, or Fiverr to have someone make it for you. Even write/draw them old-school, but please don’t use AI to make creepy, over-designed flyers full of scroll banners and art stolen from real artists. 😘

A vapid style of graphic is infiltrating social media groups and being used to advertise local events across the country - though no one seems to actually like it

04/08/2024

A fantastic opportunity!

17/07/2024

Dublin City Council Culture Company is seeking to appoint two Artists in Residence at 14 Henrietta Street.

We are seeking proposals from artists who wish to apply for one of two short term residencies at the museum at 14 Henrietta Street.

We are looking for creative and collaborative individuals who share in our belief of connecting people and communities through culture and conversation. We would like to hear from anyone who can demonstrate the necessary interest, skills, knowledge or experience as per the requirements detailed below. We encourage applications from individuals from varied and diverse backgrounds, experience, and artforms.

Closing date for applications is Monday 22 July 2024.

For more information and to apply, click here:
https://14henriettastreet.ie/news-and-stories/open-call-for-artists-in-residence-at-14-henrietta-street/

12/07/2024

Artist opportunity!

Kildare County Council Arts Service and Neighbourhood Network welcome applications from professional artists across all art forms to engage with a food security and a neighbourhood climate action project called Our Shared Plate. This artist opportunity is funded by Arts in Co Kildare. This opportunity is open to artists who have experience in participatory, collaborative or socially engaged arts practice, with an interest in ecology, climate action, activism, neighbourhoods or food security. The Artist/Creative Practitioner will work directly with Neighbourhood Network and community leaders across Kildare, Laois and Longford to respond to research being undertaken by Maynooth University Department of Geography.
Deadline: Friday 26th July, 5pm
https://bit.ly/3xHY8Wy

19/06/2024

I’m thrilled to see a new Blessington page sharing the voices of all of the people around the lake.

10/05/2024

Applications are now open for the Markievicz Award 2024, a bursary scheme for artists valued at €25,000.
Full guidelines https://bit.ly/4b7SYlc

Final Date for applications: 6 June.

Táthar ag cur fáilte anois roimh iarratais do scéim sparánachta Dhuais Markievicz 2024 ar fiú €25,000 í.
Tá treoirlínte le fáil anseo https://bit.ly/4b7SYlc

6 Meitheamh an dáta deiridh d’iarratais.

Catherine Martin T.D.
The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon
Culture Ireland

24/04/2024

My secret to photography is I always have my subjects say WHISKEY when I photograph them and then capture it when they laugh.

Thrilled to see Josephine’s book arrive safely in the hands of so many children, with many thanks to Kildare Education Support Centre.

Representing Kildare Primary Schools, Donal Fleming, Principal of St. Brigid’s Primary School in Kildare Town receives an inscribed copy of the book from Author and Artist, Josephine Hardiman.

Author, Artist and Calligrapher Josephine Hardiman, a former Primary School teacher in her hometown of Newbridge, explains the gifting of the book to Primary schools in Co. Kildare.

“Kildare County Council and Brigid 1500 awarded me a grant which assisted me in completing and publishing the book and fulfill an ambition of mine to gift the book to every Primary School in Kildare. During the book’s creation, I exhibited it in stages and held Calligraphy workshops at schools and Kildare Libraries. The children were very inquisitive about how the work was created and enthusiastic about learning a new skill. If even one future artist is inspired to continue the ancient Irish Art of Calligraphy and Illumination, then my legacy as an Artist and an Educator, will be realised.”

Principal Donal Fleming adds “The Book of Kildare is an exquisite work of art which we have installed in our foyer, in a bespoke display cabinet made in oak by Kevin O’Kelly. Each week the page will be turned so students and visitors may read about Ancient Kildare, Brigid of Kildare or Kildare Heritage. We are honoured to be the first school in Kildare to receive this beautiful gift!”.

The Book of Kildare is now available for each Kildare Primary school to collect from Kildare Education Centre, Friary Road, Kildare Town, Co. Kildare R51 KN66.

07/03/2024

Happy World Book Day! Here’s a photo I took of Josephine Hardiman, Artist & Calligrapher holding The Book of Kildare at Barker and Jones, Naas, earlier this week.

I’m currently listening to the audiobook of The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman, read by Fiona Shaw. What are you reading?

Happy World Book Day!

I visited some of the wonderful Kildare booksellers this week; it is such an honour to see The Book of Kildare on the shelves!

Kildare Library Service has received their complimentary copies of the book, one for each of the 16 libraries. Kildare Primary and National Schools will receive their copies in the near future, with gratitude for the support of Brigid 1500 and Kildare County Council.

Limited numbers of signed, first edition ‘The Book of Kildare’ are currently available from:

📍 Seanchaí Books / - Kildare Town
📍 Kildare Town Heritage Centre / - Kildare Town
📍 Solas Bhride Centre & Hermitages CLG - Kildare Town
📍 Farrell & Nephew / - Newbridge
📍Woodbine Books / - Kilcullen
📍 Naas Parish Office / Naas Parish Centre Shop & Gallery - Naas
📍 Barker and Jones, Naas / - Naas
📍 Nearly Sisters / - Newbridge
📍Imaginarium Book Market / - Clonmel, Co. Tipperary

🔗My Etsy store - link in bio

01/03/2024

The Facebook”batch notification” feature is hurting your brand!!

We all get them now - a page you follow tags “everyone” or “followers” and you get a notification. When you follow several
Pages m, or like me, manage pages, those notifications quickly add up, causing you to miss something important. This is a feature that should be used VERY sparingly.

The example below is one small business owner that tagged me and their other followers FIVE times in one week. I ran a poll on Twitter and 80% of social media users don’t like them. And what happens when you annoy your followers? You lose them.

As a user of Facebook, you can turn off batch motivations by tapping the three dots on the notification and selecting the option. However, most people don’t know how to do that and will just unfollow your page instead.

If you absolutely must use them, use them sparingly, for important updates, and always check your INSIGHTS after each post to see if you lose followers. Not all Facebook features are helpful ones; the batch notification is one such feature.

13/02/2024

Thanks again to Kildare Nationalist and Conor Forrest; they are the best publication for their cover of the Arts!

When Kildare Town Medieval Festival invited artist and calligrapher Josephine Hardiman to be a scribe at St Brigid’s Cathedral in 2016, little did she realise she would spend the best part of the next seven years creating a manuscript for the 21st century. In the tradition of Ireland’s ancient m...