The Inspiration Place: Writers and artists find space to create at Ireland's Kylemore Abbey | News | Notre Dame News | University of Notre Dame Skip To Content Skip To Navigation Skip To Search University of Notre Dame Notre Dame News Experts ND in the News Subscribe About Us Home Contact Search Menu Home › News › The Inspiration Place: Writers and artists find space to create at Ireland's Kylemore Abbey The Inspiration Place: Writers and artists find space to create at Ireland's Kylemore Abbey Published: July 06, 2020 Author: Brendan O'Shaughnessy Kylemore Abbey You want to take it all in, but it’s impossible. Should you focus on the emerald mountain backdrop topped with clouds floating like puffy jelly beans? Or the foreground of willowy reeds swaying on a placid lake? Inevitably your eyes are drawn instead to the castle, a fairy-tale version so full of crenellations and so gleaming white that even Disney wouldn’t dare. The juxtaposition of pastoral nature and human endeavor is ethereal. By the time a pair of swans paddle into your view of Kylemore Abbey in western Ireland, the presence of pure beauty overwhelms. A mere picture will not suffice; you must draw or write or paint. “Kylemore is away from Dublin, out in the beautiful mountains,” said Therese Konopelski, a Notre Dame senior from Maryland. “It’s been very inspiring. I feel like you can get a larger body of work done than when you’re in a city and you can’t hear yourself talk.” That’s the idea behind two summer programs that Notre Dame runs at the abbey in the Connemara mountains. The debut of a month-long graduate art residency last summer adds another option on top of a three-credit creative writing seminar that began in 2016. The 19 students spent the first week at the Dublin Global Gateway soaking in the city arts and lit scene, then spent the remainder at Kylemore Abbey, a 19th-century castle where Notre Dame has renovated a section for hosting guests. The read the story, click here. Posted In: International Home Experts ND in the News Subscribe About Us Related September 30, 2022 Nanovic Institute to welcome former President of Croatia Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović September 29, 2022 Notre Dame, Ukrainian Catholic University launch three new research grants September 27, 2022 Notre Dame, Trinity College Dublin engineers join to advance novel treatment for cystic fibrosis September 14, 2022 Apostolic nuncio to Great Britain to deliver the 2022 Keeley Vatican Lecture September 12, 2022 Can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street … in different countries? For the Media Contact Office of Public Affairs and Communications Notre Dame News 500 Grace Hall Notre Dame, IN 46556 USA Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Pinterest © 2022 University of Notre Dame Search Mobile App News Events Visit Accessibility Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube LinkedIn