Once in a while a project comes along which captures the imagination of an entire community and we feel that our 2021 Creative Ireland project was one of these.
In 2015, while excavating a new pathway to an entrance stile in our village green in Geashill we hit a large stone which turned to be a number of large blocks of cut limestone forming a ‘H’ arrangement. After much research our former postman Melvie Rourke let us know that this was the Site of a large Pig Weighing Scales used to weigh animals at the Geashill Pig fair. Not only that we but found out that Geashill held one of the biggest in the country in the 1800s! We have 2 flower beds currently in this site and for a number of years held our annual "Muc Fair" commemorating this event.
In 2020 we submitted a proposal to Creative Ireland for funding to create a sculpture of a pig to commemorate the Pig Fair. We were delighted to receive approval for a young local Weld Art sculptor, Luke Carson to make the piece. Luke has already produced some fine work including a Phoenix sculpture for Tullamore College.
The result is a truly unique sculptural piece which has been incredibly warmly received by both the local community and visitors alike.
This also was very much a community project. In early summer we put out 2 calls for people to donate their old and unwanted tools and implements to be used as part of the project and there was a fantastic response. We had two fantastic 'muses' for this project in a pair of Tamworth Pigs called Bigly Pigly and Reversey Percy who live close to the village. Even the installation of this piece involved help from right across the community.
A huge thank you to Luke from the people of Geashill for his skill time and patience and for leaving us something special. Luke maintained he spent more time looking at the piece as it developed and searching out just the right piece for the right place than he did carefully welding those pieces together.
Thanks are due to all in the community who donated tools and materials, to everyone who helped with the placing and installation of the piece, our local Heritage Officer and of course to Creative Ireland for funding this project.
For more information on this project or details of our sculptor Luke Carson please email us at geashillttown@gmail.com