Watch professionally recorded presentations from talks event ‘Boghanna Báistí Beaga: when artists, early years children, community and galleries come together’ that took place on 17 September 2025, at Hugh Lane Gallery. With talks by artist Helen Barry, Holy Child Preschool principal Mark Shinnick, evaluator Bernadette Larkin and artist Jane Hayes. Moderated by Liz Coman, Head of Children and Young People’s Art at the Arts Council of Ireland.
This talks event was part of the programme for Early Years Artist Residency ‘Boghanna Báistí Beaga’ with artist Helen Barry at Holy Child Preschool, October 2024 – May 2025; in partnership with NEIC.
More on ‘Boghanna Báistí Beaga’ HERE
Speaker bios:
Helen Barry is a visual artist, inventor and classically trained dancer. Helen’s practice is imbued with the responses and stimuli discovered through direct engagement in providing and developing multi-disciplinary arts experiences with and for others. The collaborative process is what drives her practice and the early year child is her ideal co-creator. The synergy created by using a cross-disciplinary approach provides a sensorium palette from which she draws from. Helen’s ambition is to create interactive artworks and experiences with and for all early years children that stimulate and support curiosity, agency, independent learning and play whilst striving to ensure that the work remains sustainable within the same critical and aesthetic platform of professional arts spheres. Helen has been awarded several bursaries, residencies and commissions for her work with early years children from The Arts Council, the Four Dublin Local Authorities and Creative Ireland. The National Concert Hall is supporting her development of ‘Sculptunes’, a series of interactive sound installations for all early years audiences. Her project ‘ART-icle 12’ Empowering Very Young Voices Through The Arts was delivered in partnership with the Central Remedial Clinic Preschool, The Hugh Lane Gallery, the National Concert Hall, Visual, DLRCC Arts Office, An Táin Arts Centre and Swift Cultural Centre. ‘ART-icle12’ was supported through The Arts Council’s Project Award.
Bernadette Larkin is an arts educator and creative producer with over thirty years’ experience in the sector. Her practice aims to encourage the links between education and artistic expression in schools, communities, and beyond. She is dedicated to making the arts accessible to all, designing and delivering programmes that foster creativity, critical thinking and a sense of cultural entitlement to children across all ages and abilities. Bernadette worked as Project Manager for ArkLink in Fatima Mansions, an initiative of The Ark Children’s Cultural Centre, Head of Education & Programmes in Airfield Estate, Dublin and as a freelance practitioner, roles have included Children’s Arts & Education Advisor for the Arts Council of Ireland, Reader in Residence, UNESCO City of Literature, Project Manager for Dublin City Council Arts Office & Culture Company and Evaluator for NEIC Artist in Residence Programme. She holds a Masters of Education from NUI Maynooth and a Social Entrepreneurs Ireland.
Mark Shinnick, a native of County Cork is a primary school teacher who has worked in disadvantaged areas and special schools. He is Principal of Holy Child Pre-school/Rutland Street Project since 2002 during which time included moving to a new state of the art building, opening a special class for autistic pre-schoolers and surviving the effects of covid pandemic on the school community. He is passionate about the creative arts and supports the school in accessing and participating in many arts projects over the years. On a personal level you can catch Mark in Rathfarnham Theatre’s production of Portia Coughlan at the Mill Theatre in November.
Jane Hayes is a Cork-based visual artist creating new and innovative work for early years audiences (0–6 years). Her multi-award-winning practice is grounded in visual art, shaped by her experience as a mother of three young boys, and rooted in the real and imagined worlds of early childhood. Hayes produces technically accomplished, conceptually rich work that reflects the physical, playful ways young children engage with art. Recent projects include Sweet Home Sweet (2023) and First Impressions (2025), both touring nationally. A member of Sample-Studios, her practice is supported by the Arts Council and Cork City Council.
Liz Coman (chair) is currently acting Head of the Children and Young People’s Art at The Arts Council of Ireland, on secondment from her role Assistant Arts Officer for Dublin City Council. She has an MA in History of Art and received the Joy E. Feinberg scholarship for outstanding leadership in the Master of Arts programme in Museum Studies, from John F. Kennedy University, Berkeley, California. She is a manager in the creative, arts, and education sector spanning two decades designing local, national and international programmes. Liz has been writer of the first Arts, Education and Learning Policy for Dublin City Council and through her work at the arts office, she has designed and evaluated supports for artists – including awards, bursaries and studio spaces. She has curated contemporary visual arts in education experiences for/with targeted audiences and is a trainer in enquiry led approaches to mediating artwork for educators, artists, teachers and community workers).
