HAVING lived in Vancouver for the past 13 years, Skibbereen native Shane Breen has brought some of that Canadian city’s bohemian quirkiness back to dear old Skibbereen with Ár n-Áit (Our Place), which he describes as a collaborative artist workspace.
Nestled away on Levis Quay, the former slaughterhouse has swapped the cleavers and guts for tasty coffee and treats as this building begins a new lease of life, bursting with creative vibes and community driven events.
Since its soft opening at the end of October the space, which has been expertly furnished by Shane and his friend Kieran, not only sells coffee and products by local artists but also provides a much-needed exhibition and workshop space for Skibbereen.
Artist Thady Trá at the recent launch of his exhibtion in Ár n-Áit.
And if it’s music you are looking for, Shane’s Technic 1210 vinyl decks take centre place on the counter top, while his vast vinyl collection adorns the racks on the wall. A piano and some guitars are also available for budding musicians, which sums up perfectly the ethos of Ár n-Áit, where everyone is welcome to get creative.
‘I’m back home now over 12 months. I had started a recruitment business there over seven years ago and ended up selling it two years ago. When Covid hit then I started to think about my priorities and decided to come back home,’ said Shane.
Taking inspiration from similar artist spaces in old, derelict buildings in Vancouver, Shane, who also produces his own electronic music, took to exploring his home town to find a suitable venue for a vision which he admits was a ‘mish-mash of ideas’.
‘I had been looking for a space and got stuck on this building when I came down the alleyway as it reminded me of a shared workspace and recording studio in Vancouver. I started to see this old building through the shared art space lens and it started from there.’
Shane admits quite a bit of work has gone into transforming the space and he and Kieran spent the best part of last year perfecting it for his vision for the space.
‘It was a DIY project where we ripped it out, put it back together and made it into the space that we now have. It was like a million different ideas all put into one.’
The space’s soft launch at the end of October saw Cork city-based dj Stevie G play an all-vinyl set alongside Shane to an appreciative audience.
‘It has been great since we opened and people seem to love coming here. I find that a lot of people popping in travel in from other places like Clonakilty and Goleen too and that’s what I want. People are finding it online and are just curious to check it out.’
He believes a town like Skibbereen needs a place like Ár n-Áit.
‘It’s not designed to replace anything in the town and it doesn’t have a competitive element to it either. It’s just filling a few gaps and it’s several elements combined into one space whether that’s a workshop or open mic night.’
He is also keen to keep everything as local as possible with his bakery items coming from Eoin Hourihane’s Busy Bakery across town, his coffee is Red Strand Coffee from outside Clonakilty and his vegan treats are from Drip in Rosscarbery.
Not one to sit back, Shane is already planning a number of projects for the space, including dj workshops for teens, as well as other events including podcasts and pop-up record shops.
‘My goal is to have something on here seven days a week which would be fantastic and I’m open to any suggestions for all types of classes. We want to build a solid line-up of creative and community-driven events.’
He is currently opening up the space three nights a week for all types of classes, workshops and is happy to chat to anyone who has an idea that might work in the space.
‘At the moment we have ‘Vino to Van Gogh’ painting classes every Friday evening and they are proving to be a great success, while the ceramic classes take place on Thursday evenings and these would be our two solid classes. We have a Tattoo Pop Up on Sunday April 13th with Black Poppy Studios from Cork city and we hope that it can become a regular event.’
The space recently hosted the launch of a new photograph exhibition by Clonakilty-based analog photographer Thady Trá, while his dad, ‘Cabin in the Woods’ dj’d at the event. That exhibition runs until April 26th.
It was also a venue for last month’s Tradfest and introduced a whole new audience to this collaborative, community space and no doubt some will return at some stage.
‘I’ve put in my own vinyl decks that I received when I was 16 years of age and they are secured into the counter and it brings a lovely vibe to the place where people can pop in for a coffee, hang out and listen to some good music.’
‘Vino to Van Gogh’ painting sessions have become popular with locals looking for some Friday fun.
For now, Shane is working on keeping that momentum going in what he hopes is an inviting and welcoming community space.
Ár n-Áit is is located on Levis Quay in Skibbereen, P81 ED83 open from 10am to 4pm from Wednesday to Sunday and for more updates on events see their Instagram page @ar_n_ait. Ceramics classes are on every Thursday evening from 6pm to 9pm, while ‘Vino to Van Gogh’ takes place on Friday evenings.
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