Bright eyesForget the high-powered auction rooms: the best place to look for emerging artists is at the annual summer student shows, and two of them are on just now.
In Cork, the Crawford College of Art and Design has its 2007 degree show until June 30th, and in Dublin, the NCAD in Thomas St will have its doors open from the 29th until July 1st ( 10am-4pm on Fri/Sat, 2pm-4pm on Sun). Go on, be a benefactor. Patsey Murphy
Trad tuition
If you're a budding traditional musician or dancer, you can still sign up for tuition from Colin Dunne, Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin, Andy Irvine, Karan Casey and Kevin Burke. They're teaching at the 11th Blas summer school at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, in Limerick, from June 25th to July 6th. The school, whose guest director this year is the RTÉ Lyric FM presenter Carl Corcoran, also has three public concerts: Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill at St Mary's Cathedral next Thursday; Niall Keegan, Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin and friends at Dolans Warehouse on July 3rd; and the legendary band Patrick Street at Dolans Warehouse on July 5th. See www.blas.ie. Michael Kelly
Arting about
Culture vultures swoop into west Cork during the summer, picking hungrily from this or that artistic morsel. West Cork Chamber Music Festival is at Bantry House from June 30th to July 8th (www.westcorkmusic.ie), Kinsale Arts Week runs from July 7th to 15th (www.kinsaleartsweek.com) and West Cork Literary Festival takes place in Bantry from July 8th to 13th (www.westcorkliteraryfestival.ie). A smaller but no less interesting offering opens in Clonakilty this afternoon (at 3.30pm), at Etain Hickey's pretty gallery in Clonakilty (winner of a National Shopfront Award in 2006). For Garden Lovers, an exhibition of art and craft, the gallery has been transformed into a little piece of the outdoors, complete with grass, stepping stones and plants. Helping to furnish this horticultural stage-set are paintings, sculptures and other works, all bringing art into the garden or the garden into the house. Ceramic sculptor Jim Turner and glassworker Michael Ray have both created water features, furniture-maker Alison Ospina has made an elegantly wacky greenwood chair and table (left) and metalworker Paddy McCormack has strung a fine pair of copper shorts on to a clothesline. Marika O'Sullivan shows her silver jewellery, made in Ballydehob, and a bevy of painters - among them Hilary Nunan, Muriel Hoey and Eadaoin Harding-Kemp - put a bit of the great outdoors into a frame. Also partaking are woodturner Kieran Higgins, ceramicists Marleen Drykonigen, Sara Roberts and Christy Keeney and sculptor Len Clatworthy. 40 Ashe Street, Clonakilty, Co Cork, 023-21479; runs until July 29th. Jane Powers
Guitar men
The country might eventually sink under the weight of arts festivals each summer, but Analog, a weekend of eclectic live performances in Grand Canal Square, Dublin, from July 13th to 15th, should be worth checking out. All gigs are free, making performances by the Cinematic Orchestra, DJ Food & DK, Tarwater and Konono No1 all the more attractive. Most intriguing is the appearance of downtown Manhattan icon and No Wave noise pioneer Glenn Branca on the Sunday. He is presenting Hallucination City: Symphony for 100 Guitars as part of a brief European tour. The epic and loud piece of massed guitar tones was originally commissioned to be performed at the World Trade Center in 2001. It features 100 local invited guitarists, and if you fancy your chances you can still register online to be one of the performers in this unique concert, thus presenting the opportunity to trot out the old joke: how many guitarists does it take to change a light bulb?
Ten - one to change it and nine to say they could do it better.
Register to perform and for free tickets at www.100guitars.ie. Larry Ryan
Beauty buzz
Dublin's newest beauty retreat is a calm oasis amid the hustle and bustle of the city centre. Urbana is the brainchild of Paul McIntyre and Paula Cuddihy, a dynamic young couple. An elite range of products and treatments are available, in a friendly and welcoming environment. An added bonus is top therapist Hazel Waters. With 16 years' experience at the most exclusive salons in Manhattan, she has worked with Richard Gere and Hillary Clinton. To top it all off, the pedicure spa overlooks shoe heaven, in the form of the Brown Thomas shoe department. Urbana, 9 Wicklow St, Dublin 2 6351616. www.urbana.ie Phyl Clarke.
The green mile
So you think you're fitter than all your friends? Find out by taking part in the Spar Mile Challenge. The event takes place in 27 venues across the country on July 7th. The aim is to encourage people of all ages, shapes and fitness levels to run a mile on that day, whether for charity, for a challenge or just for fun. Those running for charity can select their own or opt for Spar's chosen charity, the Irish Hospice Foundation. Every participant's time will be recorded, and the information collated should give an interesting insight into the fitness of the nation. By the end we'll know which is the fittest county in Ireland, what is the average time in each age group, and which is the fittest profession. Pick up a leaflet in one of their shops or register online at www.sparmilechallenge.com. Clare McCarthy
Room with a view
Costume, the boutique on Castle Market in Dublin, is bringing a taste of its wares to Galway next Thursday (28th) and setting up temporary shop at The G Hotel from 12-8pm. And with the Galway Races looming, the one-day only event is a good opportunity to find something truly special. What's on offer includes clothes by Leigh Lee, Temperley, Anna Sui, Boyd, Johnson's cashmere and Tufi Duek, as well as Costume's own label clothes and hair accessories. This is a taste of what's in the shop and not a discount sale, but as it happens to be summer sale time, many pieces will be reduced. The G Hotel, Wellpark, Galway (091-865200) Eoin Lyons