Submissions Are Open

For Festival 2024 We have three four! shows that are open to everyone: Beasts! Beasts. Of the air, of the field, of the seas. Beasts of burden and beasts of buoyancy. Beasts in human form. Beasts in human pants. Beasts from beyond, and from whatever the opposite of beyond is. Just… any sort of beast. What does the word mean to you? I’ve written it too many times now, I can’t remember. Just send us some funny animals. Be it cute fluffy puppy or the deadly banana slug, mythological monstrosity or bouncy birdy, we want your beasts! General Mayhem And then there’s the show for everything else – especially topical and satirical cartoons – from any place and on any issue around all the world. Including any great gags that happen not to be about beasts. Tarraing É I nGaeilge Tá Féile cartúin na Gaillimhe ag cuartú Cartúin as Gaeilge! Déanfar taispeantas ar ghach iontrál a ghlacfhainn an Fhéile, i nGaillimh agus ar Inis Oírr. Spriocdáta ná an 30ú Lúnasa. Which is Irish for “Draw It In Irish“, and is our exhibition specifically for cartoons in that language – the only one of its kind in the world today! Works selected for Tarr­aing é i nGaeilge will be shown both in Galway City and on Inis Oírr in the Aran Islands. Women In Techno­logy (NEW!) We’re adding another show. The theme of this one is “Women in Technology”. We invite cartoonists from all around the world to celebrate the achievements of women working in technological fields, and mark the challenges that they have faced and still face today. This show is being produced by the Galway Cartoon Festival in cooperation with the Insight Centre and Galway Science and Technology Festival. The selected entries will be on display as part of the Cartoon Festival (4 – 9 October) in a city centre venue, with entrance free to the public. The Terms and the Condi­tions The Submission Deadline Is: Friday 30 August ’24 But earlier entries stand a better chance of being selected, so please get them to us soon!

Cartoonists Respond to Cúirt Festival Events 2021

As part of Cúirt 2021, Galway Cartoon Festival will be responding to the Ashford Castle events and you’ll be able to see the resulting cartoons online! Renowned editorial cartoonist Graeme Keyes and queen of quirky line Caoimhe Lavelle will be responding to the themes discussed and the authors discussing them during this series of events that sees Cúirt’s second year as a mainly online event. The cartoons will be appearing on Cúirt’s social media channels so don’t forget to subscribe. It’s also that time of year again where the Galway Cartoon Festival must rattle our fundraising can to ensure this year’s Cartoon Festival happens! We are a completely voluntary organisation that seeks to promote the art of the cartoon each year through exhibitions, talks and workshops. We gratefully receive funding from Galway City Council’s Arts Office and sponsorship from local businesses. However it is the public that gets us over the line each year and this year is no different! So if you’ve ever laughed at a Larson or cracked up at a Keyes please consider getting the card out! Click here to make a small donation to keep the Galway Cartoon Festival going in 2021.

St Patrick’s Day Parade Galway Colouring Page!

Galway Cartoon Festival in association with Galway City Council is delighted to present this colouring-in /activity page for children everywhere. Using your markers, crayons, paints and colouring pencils you can draw your own St. Patrick’s Day Parade winding along the streets of Galway, then colour the crowd and buildings in! This page is also published in the St Patrick’s Day supplement in this week’s Galway Advertiser. Pick up a copy for information and activities about what Galway festivals are getting up to this March 17th! The Galway Cartoon Festival will run this year from 1-9 October in various venues in Galway. Check local press for details or subscribe to our site! For a high-resolution version click on the image above, then print it off at home!

DRAW ST. PATRICK’S DAY/ TARRAING LÁ ‘LE PÁDRAIG!

Galway City Council in association with the Galway Cartoon Festival is inviting entries from children of all ages to take part in a virtual St Patrick’s Day parade in 2021! “Are you looking forward to St. Patrick’s Day? Well we need your help in creating this year’s virtual St. Patrick’s Day parade for Galway! We are inviting you to draw a picture of yourself at the St. Patrick’s Day parade – you can either be there as a spectator or taking part. Our animators will then work behind the scenes to bring your images to life! Your picture may appear in our animated 2021 parade online, in the Galway Advertiser or be displayed in one of our exhibitions across the city. An bhfuil tú ag tnúth le Lá ‘le Pádraig? Bhuel, an gcabhróidh tú linn chun mórshiúl fíorúil Lá ‘le Pádraig a chruthú i nGaillimh? Iarraimid ort pictiúr a tharraingt díot féin agus tú ag mórshiúl Lá ‘le Pádraig – gléasta suas ar fhlóta nó mar dhuine den lucht féachana. Rachaidh ár mbeochantóirí ag obair sa chúlra chun do phictiúir a bheochan! Is féidir go mbeidh do phictiúr le feiceáil inár mórshiúl beoite 2021 ar líne sa ‘Galway Advertiser’ nó i gceann dár dtaispeántais ar fud na cathrach.” Click here for details of how to enter! Closing date for entries is the 1 March 2021.

UPDATED 04/12/20

Covid Level 3 Restriction Updates UPDATE 04/12/20: Good news! With the easing of restrictions we are having an extended Festival! The exhibition in the Galway 2020 Cornstore Galway Hub will continue from Tuesday 8th December for ONE WEEK and the exhibition in Áras Éanna Arts Centre is open NOW UNTIL CHRISTMAS! PLEASE VIEW OUR MAIN EXHIBITION ONLINE HERE! WE WILL UPDATE AS THE SITUATION ALLOWS.

Programme 2020: THE NEW NORMAL

UPDATE 07/10/20: ALL VENUES ARE CURRENTLY CLOSED DUE TO LEVEL 3 COVID RESTRICTIONS PLEASE VIEW OUR MAIN EXHIBITION ONLINE HERE WE WILL UPDATE AS THE SITUATION ALLOWS. EXHIBITIONS: THE NEW NORMAL  (Galway 2020 Hub, The Cornstore) 2020 has witnessed an enormous change in the world with ramifications to every walk of life. Inevitably cartoonists around the world have been responding with great humour to the Covid-19 crisis, tongues planted firmly in masked cheeks. Galway Cartoon Festival would like to mark this cartoon catharsis under this year’s theme of The New Normal. Featuring over 40 cartoonists from all over the world, you’ll get to see how much we all have in common, especially now. TARRAING É I NGAEILGE  (Galway 2020 Hub, The Cornstore) Most cartoons in this country have words, but more often than not these are in English. Yet we have a healthy culture of Irish-language work being produced here, particularly in comic strips and illustration. To celebrate this, we are presenting our second annual exhibition to represent that scene. GRACE GIFFORD (Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop, The Cornstore) Most people would be familiar with the song “Grace”, but not many know that she was actually a cartoonist and illustrator. We present a tale of romance, death, patriotism, history and cartoons in tribute to this remarkable woman. ART TRAIL  (Streets of Galway, map coming soon) Featuring works from THE NEW NORMAL and TARRAING É I NGAEILGE. Have a walk around and see what you can spot! TARRAING É I NGAEILGE, GRACE GIFFORD  (Áras Éanna, Inis Oírr) This year, we are branching out from the city and crossing the water to bring our Irish-language exhibition and our Grace Gifford Plunkett tribute to Áras Éanna Arts Centre on Inis Oírr. EVENTS MINI MOMA FRIDAY 2 OCTOBER, 7PM, KINLAY HOUSE, EYRE SQUARE: Artists Caoimhe Lavelle and Kristina Collender will be bringing their Mini Moma exhibition to Galway for this year’s Festival. Reproducing famous paintings in miniature, the artists will be painting these tiny canvases live for a limited audience! LIVE CARICATURES SATURDAY 3 OCTOBER, 1.30-3.30PM, HARBOUR HOTEL, GALWAY DOCKS: One of Ireland’s top caricature artists and co-founder of the Festival, Allan Cavanagh, will be drawing live caricatures in the Harbour Hotel! Pop in for a sitting and take home a commemorative Galway Cartoon Festival caricature! EXHIBITION LAUNCH: THE NEW NORMAL, TARRAING É I NGAEILGE, GRACE GIFFORD SATURDAY 3 OCTOBER, 4PM 2020 HUB, GALWAY CORNSTORE: We launch our main exhibitions in the Galway 2020 Hub with guest speaker Ted Turton. Come in for a socially distanced gander at the cartoons we have collected from artists all over the world dealing with life in the pandemic! READING: GERRY HANBERRY READS FROM ‘ON RAGLAN ROAD’ SATURDAY 3 OCTOBER, 5PM 2020 HUB, GALWAY CORNSTORE: Galway author, musician and historian Gerry Hanberry will read from his book “On Raglan Road” about the women who have inspired some well known songs, including featured artist Grace Gifford. EXHIBITION LAUNCH: TARRAING É I NGAEILGE, GRACE GIFFORD SUNDAY 4 OCTOBER, 5PM ÁRAS ÉANNA, INIS OÍRR Two strands of the Galway Cartoon Festival’s 2020 exhibition will run concurrently in Áras Éanna, Inis Oírr. This exhibition will be launched by artist and Áras Éanna Director, Dara McGee.

Please Support Our Partners

Festival visitors can get a 20% discount from Kinlay Hostel using the promo code “Cartoon20”!