Ann Tegnell and Frances McElroy will present BALLYCASTLE at Foulkeways in Gwynedd on Saturday, September 12th. Following the successful presentations of KNEE DEEP and Family Gathering to audiences at this remarkable community, this programm is the next in what will become a series of screenings by Philadelphia filmmakers. We’ll also show a few portraits of Pew Fellows in the Arts that Ann edited, produced by Glenn Holsten – partly in honor of Fran’s Pew Fellowship. It’s sure to be a lively evening.

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BALLYCASTLE is a half-hour documentary that tells the story of Stuart Shils, a Philadelphia based painter of Jewish heritage, whose encounter with a remote coastal village in Ireland forever changed his life.

A resident of an old industrial section of Philadelphia, Shils’ early paintings captured the light, color and rough texture of neighborhood streetscapes. Nearly ten years ago, he received an unexpected phone call from Ireland’s remote North Mayo coast inviting him to come and paint in Ballycastle. He went and his work and life were transformed.

The documentary captures Ballycastle’s exquisite light, dramatic scenery and fierce, ever-changing weather as Shils encountered it. This stunning atmosphere attracts an increasing number of internationally recognized artists to live and work under the auspices of the Ballinglen Arts Foundation.

Juxtaposed with Shils’ urban Philadelphia studio and work, the art of Ballycastle goes on display at the Balllinglen Arts Foundation and the Philadelphia Art Alliance. Two worlds, two audiences, who experience an artist’s transformation.