Current Research Projects
Kilkenny Design Workshops:
Photographic Image Management Project
Grant aided by the Heritage Council
In collaboration with the National Irish Visual Arts Library (NIVAL), students on the MA Design History and Material Culture programme will be involved in the joint Heritage Council/NCAD funded Kilkenny Design Workshops Photographic Image Management Project. This project aims to arrange, preserve and catalogue the important collection of photographs and slides held within the Kilkenny Design Workshops archive, held by NIVAL.
The State-funded Kilkenny Design Workshops (KDW), established in 1963 by William H. Walsh, served as a centre of excellence in design, proving goods in prototype before going on to be manufactured by Irish industry. Until their closure in 1988, the Kilkenny Design Workshops provided training for young Irish designers, raised the profile of Irish design abroad and increased awareness of the importance of good design in Irish industry and in everyday lives. The collection of over 10,000 slides and photographs provide a valuable record of the work of KDW and this cataloguing project will facilitate greater accessiblity to this important archive.
The MA Design History students will attend a series of specialist training sessions in archival theory and practice delivered by Eneclann, Archives and Records Management Specialists. Guided by Donna Romano and Dr Una Walker of NIVAL, the MA Design History students will put their newly learnt skills to immediate use by assisting with the arranging and cataloguing of part of the collection.
