Trad Fest West

A new festival celebrating Irish arts! Join us at the United Irish Cultural Center June 21-23, 2024 at the UICC for three days of Irish culture and community including music, dance, and art. Family-friendly events include the ultimate Seisiún in The Sunset, music workshops, a community art show, and more. Join us for a venerable showcase of traditional Irish arts.

Trad Fest West Opening Night
Friday, June 21, 2024

• Irish Music Session with "Paddy on the Binge"; Doors at 7:30-10:30 pm; Emerald Pub
• Special Irish Harp Performance featuring Amelia Romano; 8:30 pm; Emerald Pub
• Community Art Exhibition Opening Reception; 7:30-9 pm; St. Francis Room; Meet the artists: Jim Gleeson, Gerry Daly, Deimante Stankeviciute, and Daniel McGarrah

Family Day and Evening Céilí
Saturday, June 22, 2024

• Irish Music Workshops with Turf in the Bog; 2-5 pm; with beginner and intermediate Music Workshops—Guitar, Bodhran, Tin Whistle, Uilleann Pipes, Fiddle, Banjo; Kids activities include Bounce House, games, and art; Community Art Exhibition; Plus performances with Irish Pipers and Irish Dancing
• Céilí Mór; 6-9 pm; St. Patrick’s Room; Live music provided by the Sourdough Céilí Band

Wawona Gates 4th Anniversary Party
Sunday, June 23

• The Gas Men lead an all-are-welcome Seisiún in the Sunset at our Wawona Gates 4th Anniversary Celebration with birthday cake; 2-5 pm in Wawona Gates
• Irish Dancers and Irish Pipers
• Community Art Exhibition; 2-5 pm in the St. Francis Room

Community Art Exhibition

St. Francis Room at the UICC

HOURS:

• Friday, June 21, 2024; 7:30-9 pm (Opening Night Reception; meet the artists)
• Saturday, June 22; 2-5 pm
• Sunday, June 23; 2-5 pm

Featuring the works of:

Jim Gleeson (San Francisco)

James Gleeson as an Artist is multi-faceted, proficient in many mediums his work is collected worldwide. A graduate of the Academy of Art University in San Francisco where he has been on the faculty for 22 years, his work reflects both academic discipline and creative artistic freedom. As a local San Francisco Artist who specializes in local scenes of San Francisco. Jim’s studio is located in his home in Bernal Heights. He converted the downstairs space into a unique Studio gallery where he paints and teaches. As a Native San Franciscan Jim is focused on the many aspects that make his city special. He paints well-known spots and unique areas of the City that appeal to many locals and visitors as well.

More: http://www.jimgleeson.com

Gerry Daly (Co. Cork native; San Francisco Resident)

San Francisco artist and resident Gerry Daly hails from West Cork and has a collection of mixed media art pieces he is delighted to share his art once again having a successful installation at the 2023 Rock the Gates Summer Fleadh.

Deimante Stankeviciute (Co. Carlow, Ireland; visiting from Ireland)

Design Thinker | Sustainability | TheGreenRootsProject | WhyWeNeedArt—Highly Creative, Designer focused on Climate Communication. Passionate and interested in developing, exploring, and researching ways to transition humanity back to a sustainable future. I see the importance of systemic thinking and looking at all parts of the sustainability challenge.

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Daniel McGarrah (San Francisco)

Dan McGarrah had a career in advertising photography. Since 2018 he has devoted his passion and time to creating photo-based abstract artwork. A medical event in February of 2020 has increased his affinity for the abstract. McGarrah had a severe Grand Mal Seizure that lasted 10 minutes or more till the paramedics arrived. Often that is fatal, but luckily not for McGarrah, after 6 hours in the ER. But there have been permanent effects - most significantly he has lost massive amounts of long-term memory. He has virtually zero memory of activities or events going back 40 years. McGarrah recognizes his wife and sons and friends in photos but has no memory of things he did with them, or activities they did. Although he has been married 25 years, and his sons are 22 and 26; he only knows them for the past couple of years. And his perception of the world has a bit of an abstract feel.

More: https://www.danmcgarrah.com/

About Turf in the Bog

Turf in the Bog is a seasoned trad band with decades of stage-time, previously known as, The Pure Drop, features a loose collective of musicians that span the state of California assembled by Irish flute player, Eric Owen. The band name was inspired from an old LP by the great Irish folklorist and broadcaster Ciarán Mac Mathúna where he spoke about the people “footing (stacking to dry) turf in the bog”. An established house band at the Bog House Pub in Fresno, CA, the ensemble has played larger venues and festivals such as the Scottish Games in Bakersfield. They group looks forward to their San Francisco debut.

Host or Publisher United Irish Cultural Center