Some of Galway’s most talented designers and artists were among the 109 makers from Design & Crafts Council Ireland (DCCI) Made Local campaign which completed its run at the RDS on Sunday.

Galway exhibitors included Inishbofin-based textile fashion house Bofin Weaves; Emily Jean Atelier from Moycullen; Living Ginger Designs, who work in ceramics outside Oughterard; Lynsey de Burca Jewellery in Moycullen; Rachel Webb Ceramics in Galway city; Barna-based print designers SKETCHICO, and Thin Line Coastal Maps in Kinvara.

Visitors who flocked to the Dublin venue experienced the very best of Ireland’s handweavers, fashion designers, and crochet artists, as this year’s show celebrated the Year of the Textile.

The event was officially opened by Minister Alan Dillon, Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment with special responsibility for Employment, Small Business and Retail.

“Design & Crafts Council Ireland’s Made Local initiative continues to play a vital role in supporting our makers, strengthening local economies, and encouraging people to choose sustainably produced Irish work,” he said.

“The presence of so many Made Local designers and craftspeople at this year’s fair is a testament to the sector’s creativity, resilience and ambition,” he added.

Pictured: Alan Dillon, Minister of State for Small Business, Retail and Circular Economy in Ireland with Henry Bocxe of Thin Line Coastal Maps from Kinvara, participating in this year’s Gifted, Ireland’s contemporary craft fair at the RDS, Dublin.