Athlone Castle, Luan Gallery and Abbey Road Artists’ Studios are delighted to present Threads of Place Community Exhibition, showcasing work created by local participants during the Threads of Place community project.
The exhibition will take place in two venues, Abbey Road Artists’ Studios Community Space and the Boardwalk Gallery at Luan Gallery and will be open to the public on Saturday 1 August from 11 am to 5 pm, and Sunday 2 August, from 12 pm to 5 pm. Admission is free, and all are welcome.
Threads of Place is a creative collaboration between Athlone Castle Visitor Centre, Luan Gallery and Abbey Road Artists’ Studios. Through a series of artist-led drawing events, the project invited people of all ages from local communities to explore Athlone’s rich cultural and historical heritage through creative practice.
The project brought local community groups, artists, historians, amateur actors, adults and young people together to explore significant heritage sites through drawing-based practice. The project connected key moments in Athlone’s history from the Siege of Athlone through to the early twentieth century while engaging with histories of local sites such as the former Athlone Workhouse and the neighbouring Franciscan Abbey ruins. At its core, the project aimed to widen access to the visual arts, support inclusive participation, and foster social connection, learning, and well-being through shared creative activity. The resulting exhibition brings together a collection of these diverse community responses, offering a collective portrait of place shaped through observation, memory and shared experience.
Threads of Place is supported by Westmeath Arts Office and Creative Ireland 2026 Community Grant.
Organizer
Visit our 13th century castle and experience history brought alive…
Athlone Castle was first built to defend the crossing point on the River Shannon and evolved into a bold defensive structure over the centuries. Elements of the original castle can still be seen today.
We tell the story of settlement in this part of Ireland’s Ancient East, from the Neolithic period through Viking, and Medieval ages to modern life in Athlone.