Cupán Cré - Clay Cup

The CUPÁN CRÉ – CLAY CUP project/exhibition is comprised of a collection of 43 ceramic pots. These are made from clay gathered from every county in Ireland, over a period of a good few years. There is one pot for every county, one for each province: Connacht, Leinster, Munster, Ulster (North & South), Ulster (South) and Ulster (North). There are three pots to represent Ireland as a country made from a combination of clay from every county on the island biome of Ireland, and one large pot called the Cupán Cré- Clay Cup.

This is a creative project/exhibition that combines the Arts, Sciences and Humanities: combining the symbol of the Clay Vessel with information on Ecology, Biology, Psychology and Mythology in an endeavour to acknowledge and celebrates our inter-relatedness with the living world. This project is a response to the humanitarian, ecological and climate challenges we face in our modern times. It is offered as an aid to help in the re-imaging and re-invigoration of our relationship with the living world.

The Cupán Cré- Clay Cup is a contemporary re-visioning of the Irish Mythological Vessel of Everlasting Abundance a symbol that resides in ancient stories, the deep ecological roots of the Irish psyche. By pulling clay out of the land and forming it into a vessel made from the Earth of Ireland the ancient vessel is re-imagined as an Earthen container; a Clay Cup. This offers an immediate connection to the land and encourages a sense of place and ecological identity. The Clay Cup is a physical and symbolic representation of Ireland while also being symbolic of the Earth as a whole. We are contained within a complex matrix of ecological systems and process that provides both our physical and psychological nourishment and support. The Earth is a container from which we derive all our necessary requirements for life; it is a vessel of everlasting abundance that gives Everything – life.

By utilizing the ancient Irish vessel symbol in combination with clay from every county I conceptually bring the various county clays back together again to reform and reinvigorate a sensibility of wholeness; to re-member that everything is interconnected with everything else.

 

Funds are being raised to facilitate hosting a Cupán Cré – Clay Cup Exhibition. The exhibition will comprise of the collection of the 43 ceramic pots from all over Ireland along with accompanying information. Donations will cover the cost of professional photography plus editing of images of all 43 ceramic pots. The design/layout and printing of information panels. The carpentry required for the making of exhibition plinths plus other purchased display items. The designs and print of the information support material for the exhibition.

These foundational funds will support the project as it continues to develop and grow.

€20 Donation: You will receive a set of 4 cards: A selection of images of the pots of Ireland and the Cupán Cré- Clay Cup Project.

€75 Donation: You will receive a set of four cards and a clay pot handmade by Lucy. This is a limited edition of small, hand sized clay pots, made for the specific purpose of raising funds for this inaugural exhibition of the Cupán Cré – Clay Cup project. The pots are made from clay excavated from out of the ground from where she lives in County Kerry, then cleaned and prepared and hand made into a vessel with a smooth burnished finish. Your name will go on a list of sponsors which will be displayed at the exhibition.

The gathering of funds in a collective way is very much in keeping with the sensibility of the clay vessel symbol; gathering together a communal intention to foster a sense of relatedness with the wider world.

Funds to be raised by May 2021, for the Feile na Bealtaine Festival, Dingle, Co. Kerry

All support is greatly appreciated.

For more info www.claycup.ie

Míle Buíochas

Lucy