Peadar-Tom Mercier, a musician and composer from An Cheathrú Rua. Photo Michael Kelly.
€33,860 has been awarded to artists working across literature, music, theatre, traditional arts and visual arts in Galway.
Galway County Council have announced the thirteen recipients of its 2026 Artist Support Scheme. The funding, administered by the local authority’s Arts Office, is aimed at supporting professional artists at all stages of their careers to develop their practice and progress new work.
Aisling Conneely, Alison Mac Cormaic, Ari Bhatti, Fergal Scahill, Laurie Legrand, Lorraine Stack, Máire Robinson, Maisie Lee, Moira Mahony, Peadar-Tom Mercier, Roisin Lowry, Ruth Smith and Shirley-Anne Godfrey are the successful applicants for 2026.
Galway County Arts Officer Sharon O’Grady said the scheme plays a key role in sustaining artistic development locally. “This annual scheme provides essential financial support to professional artists, allowing them to develop their arts practice and artistic career,” she said. “It provides a vital bridge in funding and often positions artists to apply for larger-scale opportunities in the future”.
Athenry-based theatre artist Moira Mahony applied as an early-stage artist to develop her play Lifejacket, which she will redraft, rehearse, produce and present. Set in Galway, the work follows a man in his forties dealing with addiction, illness and family estrangement, exploring themes of alcohol culture, masculinity, mental health, intergenerational trauma and recovery through sharp humour and emotional honesty.
Peadar-Tom Mercier is a musician and composer from An Cheathrú Rua who is involved in Ireland’s traditional arts, experimental and alternative music scene. Through the scheme Peadar-Tom will undertake a residency with the Bothy Project on the Isle of Eigg in Scotland. Peadar-Tom will also be using the artist support scheme to collaborate with filmmakers João Tudella and Dónal Dineen to create a music video for Trá Pháidín’s latest album “Cloch’s Claí”, which is based on dry-stone walls and tokenism of the Gaeltacht, to be released in September 2026.
Visual artist Laurie Legrand, based in Killimor, will use the award to research and develop a new body of work titled “Strategies (of simultaneous presence and invisibility)”. The work explores the implications of data misuse and neurodivergence and will be subsequently exhibited in Cork as well as other venues.
Speaking about the award, Legrand said it offered “a valuable opportunity to focus on my work without interruptions for an extended period” and described it as “sincerely heartening to be supported by an art panel in my own county”.
A peer panel of professional artists assessed applications for the scheme, which is open to practitioners working across a wide range of disciplines including architecture, dance, film, opera and street arts.
Galway County Council said the funding will directly support artists’ professional development and help create future opportunities within the sector.
