The picturesque, white-washed thatched cottage is an iconic emblem of Ireland and beautiful examples of this still-living craft can be found all over the island today. This beautiful new book is a celebration of the enduring beauty and wonder of Irish thatch. With full colour photographs throughout.
Category: Architecture/Building, Art/Craft, Heritage, History
A celebration of Irish thatch.
The picturesque, white-washed thatched cottage is an iconic emblem of Ireland.
The tradition reaches back in history to the ancient crannóg and one-roomed labourers’ cottages. Beautiful examples of this still-living craft can be found all over the island, from bustling urban centres and quiet country roads to the wild coasts of the west.
Since moving into a thatched cottage several years ago, Emma Byrne has become fascinated by thatched houses and the craft behind them. Armed with a camera, a notebook, and a Sat Nav, she took to the roads, travelling the length and breadth of this island to capture the variety and beauty of Ireland’s thatch.
Emma Byrne is a graphic designer and artist. She is a graduate of Central Saint Martins School of Art and Design. She has won numerous awards for her design including The IDI (Irish Design Institute) Graduate Designer of the Year, the IDI Promotional Literature Award for her work on Brown Morning, and a Children’s Books Ireland Bisto Merit Award for her work on Something Beginning With P: New Poems from Irish Poets. She has illustrated many books, including Best-Loved Oscar Wilde, Best Loved Yeats, The Most Beautiful Letter in the World by Karl O’Neill, a special edition of Ulysses by James Joyce, and A Terrible Beauty by Mairéad Ashe Fitzgerald. She lives in a thatched house in Co. Wexford.
wonderful tribute to the old art of thatching
multi award winning graphic designer and artist Emma Byrne has a flair for the beautiful. The Co. Wexford native brings her passion for colour, design and tradition together with this warm and wonderful coffee-table tome. Alongside simple and stunning photographs of Irish homes – past and present – tidbits of trivial text recount the history and heritage of both the structures and the area in which they sit. What becomes clear is that Ireland has done well to preserve its past, as evidenced by the growing number of visitors who come to the Emerald Isle each year in search of authentic experience. More than an architectural exercise, Irish Thatch is a series of snapshots into the country’s rich traditions, and the people who lived them
the only All-Ireland self-builder’s and home improver’s magazine
handsome … lavishly illustrated … a book written from the hearth
a most beautiful book … an absolutely stunning book ... an ideal Christmas present … buy it early enough and you could ship it to those around the world
gorgeous … just in time for Christmas ... beautiful
beautiful
wonderfully-produced
a charming book to inspire gentle adventure … Emma brings you through the history & craft of Irish thatched cottages … a charming pictorial tour of these traditional beauties throughout Ireland
a nice Xmas present
wonderful
stunning
packed full of wonderful colour images of the buildings, giving the reader a flavour of their appearance across Ireland
