Space Invaders - Early Years Arts Seminar & Festival

Building on the success of last year’s inaugural festival, the Space Invaders team returnedto bring the public a weekend of artistic delights in Farmleigh on the 9th & 10th of May. For a short spell we invaded the beautiful grounds of Farmleigh to present a festival that cultivated creativity and well-being.  This programme offered a variety of opportunities to engage with multiple art forms and highly skilled artists in comfortable environments.  The 2015 festival was particularly special as we included a Seminar for professionals working in the childhood sector and those interested in early years arts education.  

The seminar on May 9th focused on Artful Dodgers, a unique music and visual arts programme located in two crèche services in Fingal, Ros Eó in Rush and Little Learners in Dublin 15.  In partnership with artist Jackie Maguire,  a dynamic seminar schedule which included presentations that demonstrated the rich potential in early years arts education, and research conducted in collaboration with Trinity College Dublin Arts Education Research Group (AERG) was delivered.  We were joined by Rhona Matheson, CE of Starcatchers, to share examples of best practice in Scotland.  Our panel discussion included contributions from Dr. Margaret Rogers of Better Start, Lisa Kavanagh of Early Childhood Ireland, and Seóna Ní Bhriain Head of Young People, Children and Education with The Arts Council of Ireland.  

The Children’s programme on May 10th was exclusively for those aged 0-5 years and their guardians who were treated to artistic performances from around the world.  In partnership with Cliodhna Noonan of Acting Up!, performances from Belgium, Croatia, Lithuania, Austria and Ireland were presented.  ReCreate joined us with their ‘Warehouse of Wonders’ full of playful material with lots of potential.  There was something for everyone to enjoy and share in the celebration of early years. 

The 2015 Programme details are in the attached link. 

Please do check out our beautiful 2015 publicity piece: Space Invaders Festival & Seminar 2015  and also the insightful presentations given by the artists and researches at the seminar 2015: Artful Dodgers early years arts and research programme

2014 witnessed the initiation of Space Invaders.  The early years arts festival is exclusively for those aged 0-5 years, making it the first one of its kind, locally.  Space Invaders 2014 provided artists, children, families and educators with the time and resources to come together and embark on an important journey of discovery. The festival enchanted participants with international performances and workshops in a variety of idyllic locations in Farmleigh. During the day’s events Early Childhood Educators were invited to attend experiential workshops designed specifically with their professional needs in mind. This film goes behind the scenes to capture the preparation for and delivery of the performances and workshops. The artists share their experiences and personal insights into the value of working with the youngest members of our community:   Space Invaders Festival 2014