Lure of the local | Súilí (Cara Donaghey)
Outdoor Exhibition Swan Park, Buncrana
Cara Donaghey is an artist and printmaker based in Buncrana. In 2023, she started working under the name “Súilí”, creating printwork inspired by Donegal and its landscapes, history, and built heritage. This was inspired by her time living abroad during the COVID-19 pandemic, where she craved a connection to home. When she returned, she started with one design of O’Doherty’s Keep, and she started screenprinting her drawings onto canvas tote bags before expanding into the world of risograph prints. Cara has chosen to create this work under the name “Súilí”, an Irish translation of “Swilly”, which allows her to maintain a separation between the illustrative, light-hearted approach to printmaking as Súilí, versus her more concept-driven etching work under her own name.
The designs exhibited here are risograph prints, which is a type of printing that uses stencils and spot-colour inks to produce multiples. It is like a blend between screenprinting and digital printing, with its own quirks. There are subtle differences between each print, either through the ink or registration, adding to the charm of the process. Each print is drawn, printed and finished by Cara, in small batches.
Cara is a member of Derry Print Workshop and Guildhall Taphouse Studios, Derry. She studied in the National College of Art and Design, and graduated in 2017 with a joint BA (Hons) in Fine Art Printmaking and Visual Culture. She is a previous member of Black Church Print Studio, Dublin, where she served on the board of directors as a studio member. Her contemporary art practice is funded by Donegal County Council’s Artist Bursary scheme and she has previously been awarded the Arts Council of Ireland’s Agility Award in 2022.
A huge thank you to our local councillors who supported our application to Donegal County Council Development Fund Initiative 2025 and the Arts Council Arts Grant 2025 for supporting the creation of these exhibition display cases.
