Applefest 2022 in Clonmel was a spectacular success

The fifth edition of Clonmel Applefest has  ended and already people are talking about what is next on the agenda.
It was a fantastic sunny weekend packed with wonderful events where friends, families and strangers came together to celebrate all that is special about Clonmel and its beautiful surroundings.

Starting with the launch of the Artisans of Clonmel book on  followed by a very pleasant street BBQ courtesy of the Bunker restaurant with music by Stuart Connolly, the festival continued with an event-packed day  which this year coincided with Culture Night.

The day started in the late afternoon at Old St Mary’s, launching Brigid Teehan’s site-specific sculpture for children, a mythical creature with the name of GRAGON, half goat, half dragon, which was unveiled in front of the many participating families who were involved in the project.

The beautifully made collaboration which involved school children from the Sisters of Charity and Parochial schools as well as residents of Hughes Mills is an unusual creation made up of second hand materials, a repurposed pulpit and a traditional building material – COB - made of subsoil, sand, straw and water.

The playful creature will remain in situ for several weeks.
Two exhibits at the Tipperary Museum, a reading by Manchán Magan followed by a pop-up Gaeltacht session at Eldon’s Bar and two events at Hearn’s hotel completed the action packed day which catered for a wide range of public, with climate change as a discreet underlying theme.

Clonmel Applefest is all about celebrating the heritage and talents of the local, so Saturday’s harvest and heritage fair was strong on local talent, from the musical talent of Caitlin McVicker and Ellie Mac, to the mother-daughter team of Grainne and Elke Wilson, who were facilitating costume and headpiece workshops with natural materials.

This and the pottery making with Eileen Singleton were particularly popular with children, the arts facilitators working non-stop for most of the day.
SUIRCAN
Other stands included local environmental group Suircan, the Clonmel Repair café, apple pressing with the Carlow Cider collective as
well as street chalk drawing, a Doodle table and a giant participative vegetable, fruit and flowers mandala, the recently formed Hedgerow Ireland, Galtee Honey and STBA also hosted tables and the Dragon Paddlers brought two of their beautiful boats.

A selection of quality food vendors and craft stands accompanied by glorious weather completed the setup and really highlighted the suitability of the new Suir Island location with its unique mountain backdrop.
With Civil Defence and Clonmel Borough Council on board, the new location has much to offer and is likely to help expand the fair over the coming years.

The day finished with the much-anticipated harvest procession which was the culmination of several workshops and brought together numerous performers, artists and families who were delighted to take over the streets of Irishtown. They marched towards the convent bridge to witness a ‘release’ ritual and some skilled fire juggling by the river.
The procession then snaked its way back to Suir Island for a finale fire spectacle by the Rogú Arts Company celebrating the end of harvest time and the start of the dark winter season.

Delighted onlookers cheered as charcoal rain fell under the Clonmel sky.
The festival is not complete without its traditional Sunday morning walk which was hosted by Clonmel Tidy Town and welcomed journalist Catherine Cleary of the Pocket Forests social enterprise.

Clonmel woman delighted to be back on Ploughing duty

Carrie Acheson

SPOKEN WORD
Afterwards, festival visitors could attend the spoken word event where a feast of poetry was awaiting them.
The festival ended on a high note with the Cedartowns performing a high octane gig to a very happy audience of festival revellers.

“The feedback on the festival has been extremely positive and it has been a wonderful occasion to remember the importance of coming together as a community to celebrate everything that is beautiful about our local area,” says Jeanette O’Dwyer, founding festival committee member and a key Applefest volunteer.
“We would like to thank all the funders, sponsors, patrons, volunteers and venue hosts and local businesses that have helped make this into such a vibrant and successful weekend,” she said.