ICA exhibition opened to celebrate centenary

Published: Monday, October 25, 2010

A unique slice of history was unveiled at the County Museum in Clonmel last Thursday night when the exhibition ICA, Champions in our Community was launched.
The exhibition features jewellery, fashion accessories, paintings and stunning black and white photos, along with quotations and memories from local Guild members of the ICA, which this year celebrates its centenary.

Representatives of many of the South Tipp ICA's almost 30 federations were told by Anne Maria Dennison, the association's national president, that the exhibition marked another important moment in their centenary celebrations.

She said it demonstrated the ICA in all its facets and marked its enduring legacy and continued contribution to the promotion of Irish arts and crafts.

Tracing the association's history, she said it had been to the forefront of change in the introduction of rural electrification and water schemes. Its commitment to education continued at An Grianan, the centre of lifelong learning in Co. Louth.

She paid tribute to many South Tipperary women who had played a leading role in the growth and development of the organisation, including Phyllis O'Connell, Alice Ryan and Olivia Hughes.

The exhibition was a wonderful showcase and fitting tribute to the ICA, whose work was far from complete, as the association was now focused on its re-invention and modernisation to face new challenges.

On what she described as "a special evening" the Mayor of Clonmel, Siobhan Ambrose, thanked all ICA members, past and present, for the important role they had played in the lives of women.

She paid tribute to the association, as the largest women's organisation in the country, for its power in changing society by playing a part in adult education and the rural electrification and water schemes.

Cllr. Ambrose recalled the late Catherine McLoughlin, her former County Council colleague who was also a leading light in the ICA and who died earlier this year.

The exhibition was launched by Sean McCarthy, County Council chairperson. He described the ICA's success as "enormous" and said the organisation had left an indelible mark on Irish life, beginning in Co. Wexford in 1910 as the United Irishwomen before being officially born as the ICA in 1935.

The ICA had made a huge difference in Irish life. "Ireland is full of great women and ye epitomised the great change that had taken place", he said.

This exhibition would live in the memory of those who had participated in the association's development, Cllr. McCarthy added.

This was a display that the ICA was very proud of, said Anne O'Connell, South Tipp president. In its centenary year the association looked back with pride and forward with confidence, she stated.

Museum curator Marie McMahon thanked all those who had contributed to the exhibition, which continues until February.