Their work once adorned the floors of the Sultan of Brunei’s palace.

Now a fascinating tribute to the factory workers of Youghal Carpets, the closure of which devastated the East Cork town in 1984, will open to the public later this month.

Greywood Arts in partnership with artist Katie Nolan present The Knot On The Fly, an exhibition reflecting on the rich history and cultural legacy of the Youghal Carpets factory at The Mall Arts Centre in Youghal from March 14th to March 23rd.

Over a number of months last year, events were organised at Greywood Arts in Killeagh for former workers at Youghal Carpets’ Youghal and Carrigtohill factories, who came armed with precious memorabilia, old wool and jute, photographs and documents from their Youghal Carpets days.

By offering ways to reconnect with one another through workshops in papermaking and weaving, storytelling, and hand-casting, Nolan combines their stories and shared experiences into a poignant and important creative expression.

A series of handcasting workshops at Greywood Arts saw 42 hands cast in plaster, to represent the role of the 42 workers that were needed to prepare the looms before the machine could weave a carpet.

‘A celebration of the workers’

“Youghal Carpets was such a huge part of the local community and economy in East Cork for many decades, and its closure in 1984 had such a significant impact on the socio-economic fabric of East Cork.” said Greywood Arts Creative Director Jessica Bonenfant.

“This exhibition celebrates the workers of Youghal Carpets. By offering ways to reconnect with one another through workshops in papermaking and weaving, storytelling, and hand-casting, artist Katie Nolan combines their stories and shared experiences into a poignant and important creative expression through The Knot on the Fly exhibition.”

The public is invited to attend the official opening on Friday, March 14th from 5pm and a conversation with the artist will take place on Saturday, March 15th at 12 noon, offering further insight into the research, artistic process, and community collaboration behind the exhibition.

The exhibition will be open daily in Youghal from 10:30am to 4:30pm daily until March 23rd.