Tipperary arts centre bid farewell to an ambitious and innovative artistic director

Artistic Director at Nenagh Arts Centre, Eva Birdthistle has announced she is to step down.

Ms Birdthistle took up her role six years ago and led the development of some the most innovative and creative programmes at the centre.

Those programmes continued through the Covid-19 pandemic as the centre embraced online and hybrid approaches.

This work meant the arts could not only continue in Nenagh during the pandemic, but thrive.

Sucessfull programmes have included Nenagh Children’s Film Festival which celebrated it's fourth year in 2023 and the award winning A Harvest Knot for Lughnasa project in 2020. 

In November this year, the Nenagh Arts Centre's Upcycled Streetscape workshop was recognised as a runner-up in the Sustainability and Climate category at the National Heritage Week Awards. 

In this week's Nenagh Arts Centre newsletter Ms Birdthistle said that the programmes developed during lockdown gave her a love of community development.

She said the centre's goals were always 'ambitious' and thanked her team for their work.

"As I get ready to embark on a new career path, I am more emotional than I had anticipated.

"I am proud of what we have done, and I’m very grateful for those who supported my sometimes overly ambitious ideas.

"None of this would be possible without a fantastic team at Nenagh Arts Centre, staff and board, as well as the many artists that graced us, but mostly the community that trusted us to deliver," said Ms Birdthistle.

In response, Nenagh Arts Centre said on social media:

"Eva's tenure as Director at Nenagh Arts Centre has been characterized by her unwavering passion for the arts, her innovative vision, and her tireless commitment to fostering a vibrant cultural community.

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"We wish you all the best, Eva, in your new adventure!

"Hope that you will visit us from time to time."