Threading the needle – Jack O’Meara

This page is part of a series of pages detailing the talks and workshops scheduled for the Amazing Lace Symposium 2025 taking place on 22 February in the Absolute Hotel. To see the whole programme, go here.

Talk title: Threading the needle

Talk abstract: A brief explanation of Jack’s experience of beginning to learn traditional Irish Lace. He will talk about the struggles he encountered with accessibility in the beginning stages of lacemaking, how he started lacemaking for his final year project in NCAD. Then the talk will move to the present day to discuss his experience learning under Fiona Harrington as part of the Homo Faber Fellowship. Jack will also briefly touch on his plans to create some form of community lace project in the future (depending on funding).


Airgid (Silver) – This fractured vessel is the result of an investigation into the history of materials in Ireland- a combination of the primitive ceramics made by the Beaker People of the Early Bronze Age, contrasting the refined needle lace of the late 19th Century. This project was completed with the support of the Branchardiére Lace Bursary.

Bio: Jack Ó Meara is a Visual Artist based in Dublin, Ireland. Materiality and manifestation of time play essential roles in Ó Meara’s work. With a central focus on embroidery, he combines found objects with textile processes- conveying narratives through materials and techniques. Ó Meara’s practice often comes back to the question of ‘what is Irishness?’, interrogating themes such as colonialism, ecology, queerness, mythology and activism. Sculptural forms, lace and embroidered images are typical outcomes of Ó Meara’s process of research and making.