CARLOW DAY TRIP 14 APRIL 2010
A note by Eamon Henry. Date 15 April 2010

A very enjoyable day trip to Carlow town was made on Wednesday 14th April 2010 by eight members of the Active Senior IT Society (ASITS). The main objective was to visit the Visual Centre for Contemporary Arts in Carlow town. We were organised and led by Mrs. Angela Hickey, and set off by bus from the Dublin Busaras at 10.30 a.m.

A cool dry cloudy morning accompanied us on our way to Carlow, which we reached about 12.00 noon.
We enjoyed a leisurely lunch of nice food at Lennon’s Bar located in the Centre. Then, around 2.00 p.m. our guide Mrs. Eilish O’Neill arrived, to take us on a conducted tour of the various rooms which hold the items on display. Mrs. O’Neill told us that the Centre itself had won a prize for its layout and design, including lighting effects. We were not able to visit the George Bernard Shaw Theatre, which is closed to the public at present.
The main painting exhibits are by the artist Sean Scully and comprise several abstract designs in vertical and horizontal bars, with variation in colouring. Our guide told us that some of these items are rather famous, among those who understand abstract art, and that they have high market values. However, such paintings are light-years away from the sunlit landscapes and Old Masters’ studies of humans and other animals, enjoyed by simple-minded folks like ourselves.

Among the structural items there was a large sphere comprising a buff-coloured plastic cover surrounding air or some other gas. Press your ear against it and you can hear the noise of traffic – maybe just what we all need. Another structure was the shape of a lorry-load of waste paper, almost completely made from waste paper. A wide variety of moving art shapes and sounds were also on display, driven by DVD technology.
As might be expected, only a small fraction of the available space is in use to hold what is on display, because the Visual Centre is less than five years old. Our guide provided excellent comment on what is present, but to appreciate these works of art more fully, some education is definitely needed by viewers like ourselves.

On emerging from the Visual Centre, we found the sun shining from a clear sky, and showing off to great advantage the numerous daffodils in full bloom along our way. Our next port of call was the Catholic Cathedral, built about 1830 and typical of such buildings of that time, with much stonework in its walls and a pointed spire. It is of modest size on the inside, but showing in full brilliance the colours of its stained-glass windows lit up by the afternoon sun. These window pictures represent angels and saints and the central foundation events of Christianity.
After a coffee-break we moved to the river Barrow, where local people were feeding a large gathering of swans of varying ages, the younger ones showing brown plumage among the white. Then we moved on to get the return bus, which set out about 5.00 p.m. and reached Dublin City Centre at roughly 6.45 p.m.

This could be remembered as the end of a perfect day.