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Toma McCullim

Skibbereen, West Cork, Ireland. 26th July, 2019. The launch of a year long artist residency took place this afternoon in Cara House, Skibbereen. Artist, Toma McCullim, will be based at the Ludgate Hub for the length of the residency, the project is called 'Calling Home'. The project explores the lived experiences of theWest Cork people who left Ireland in the '50's and '60's. The project will involve the diaspora. ARtist Toma McCullim adresses the assembled crowd. Picture: Andy Gibson.

Resident at both Schull & Skibbereen Community Hospitals , since 2013 – Toma  has a 1st class BA (hons) Degree in Anthropology of Art from the University of East Anglia and has an MA in Arts Process from the Crawford College of Art and Design, Cork. She has been awarded grants from Create/ Arts Council and the Cork County Arts Dept. for her participative arts work. Her own work has shown nationally and Internationally.

In partnership with Uillinn West Cork Arts Centre and the Arts for Health Programme, Toma in Artist in Residence at the Ludgate Hub in Skibbereen supported by the Business to Arts Artist in Residence  Programme. Her main project for the residency is titled ‘Calling Home’

Calling Home is an innovative participatory arts project which seeks to honour the experiences of Irish people who left Ireland during the 50’s and 60’s for new lives in other countries. It brings older people into connection through new technologies. We are reaching out to reunite West Cork diaspora and remember together what it was like to leave home and what it was like to be left behind. In this time, when we are hearing so many  conversations about present day immigration, we are giving voice to the lived wisdom of our elders to tell us of the things they experienced.

‘I am particularly excited this year to working with Ludgate Hub and Business to Arts to partner my Arts for Health work. I will be encouraging lots of networking across our wider community to fully integrate our programme into our collective shared cultural life.’

Past Work includes:-

These Tangled Threads Artist in Residence at Uillinn West Cork Art Centre May-July 2015 which resulted in exhibition about dementia  in Uillinn August 2015.

110 Skibbereen Girls residency at Skibbereen Hospital working with residents staff in 2017 led to the bronze participative public artwork.

A long form poem describing the making process  can be found here.

She is also a production designer for film and theatre including the  Multi Award-winning Float Like a Butterfly, feature film by Carmel Winters.

  1. Still from short film ‘Sweet Shop’ Create research award.
  2. ‘High Home‘ installation shot
  3. ‘Behold’ participative project Essaouira, Morocco.