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Irish Examiner
01-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Diary of a Gen-Z Student: CMAT is right about the recession — from the big boys to the Berties
I grew up in a housing estate in Dunshaughlin, in Meath. We moved there when I was about five, though I could be wrong. I was definitely still standing on a stool to be able to reach the sink in the bathroom. All I know is I was young and curly-haired and the village seemed very cosmopolitan to me; I had lived on a cul-de-sac on my grandparents' farm until that point, so Supervalu being walking distance from my house felt like urban living. For the majority of my childhood, the estate was unfinished. There were 14 houses finished before the 2008 crash put a swift halt to building across the country. So, playing in the driveways and inspecting the foundations of unfinished houses was a favourite activity of the kids in the estate. If we found a plank of wood lying around in the building site, we'd take it to make a ramp for rollerblading or skateboarding. I was probably 12 years old by the time it was actually finished. At the time, I never particularly considered why there were so many unfinished housing estates around the village. 'Recession' was a word that I heard often for most of my childhood, though I didn't understand it. Hearing friends talk about their parents losing their jobs was the norm. I didn't really know what a country looked like when it wasn't in massive economic distress. And I hadn't really thought deeply about that experience until recently, when I listened to CMAT's most recently released song, Euro-country, part of her forthcoming album by the same name. CMAT grew up 20 minutes away from me, in Dunboyne. Though she is a little older than me, so her memories of growing up during the recession seem more clear-cut than mine, I found myself thinking about how a childhood taking place at the time in Ireland was moulded by the recession. Because even though you weren't an adult, losing a job or missing mortgage payments, you were hearing about these things happening, and having your world-view shaped by it. Her lyrics have sparked interesting conversations around the legacy of the recession, how it impacted children at the time. CMAT: an important voice on the long tail of the austerity years. Photo: Sarah Doyle Memory often looks a little like a patchwork quilt, fragments of different materials sewn together. And when we're talking about a memory that had a profound impact on us, the experience of memory can be felt physically. That is what is reflected in the lyrics of CMAT's song, as she recalls ' All the big boys/All the Berties/All the envelopes, yeah they hurt me/I was 12 when the das started killing themselves all around me/And it was normal/Building houses that stay empty even now'. Like CMAT, there are certain aspects of the recession that have lodged themselves in my memory. I remember my primary school making cutbacks. Like the week our teacher told us that we wouldn't be seeing the drama teacher for the rest of the year, because the school couldn't afford the lessons. I remember the day one of my peers asked our teacher where we would be going on our school tour that year. The teacher explained to the class that school tours were expensive, so no one in the school would be going on one for a while. And I remember my teacher explaining very carefully that the recession would impact Santa Claus, too. So, we shouldn't ask for too much and be grateful for anything we might receive at Christmas. If we didn't get a big present, it wasn't because we were on the naughty list. We were banned from discussing what Santa brought us for Christmas that year, a compassionate rule for a classroom of children with different home lives. My family was fortunate enough that my parents continued to work throughout the recession. So, intense financial worry was something that I mainly heard from my friends. At the age of eight, I had a friend tell me that she was worried about her father needing dental work that her family couldn't afford. She explained that he worked in construction, and couldn't understand why he hadn't been going to work the way he used to. Fears that she never voiced to her parents; a heavy burden for a young child to be carrying alone. That is my most profound memory of the recession: children experiencing the distress of the adult world, before they could ever fully comprehend it. All they knew for sure was the feeling of anxiety. Those children had their childhood prematurely ended. And many still bear the psychological consequences, as CMAT perfectly illustrates in Euro-country.
Irish Times
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
Dublin photographer Sarah Doyle: ‘I am more interested in style than fashion'
Dublin photographer Sarah Doyle has a gift for creating striking images. Since graduating from the University of the Arts in London, where one of her tutors was the acclaimed iconoclastic photographer and film-maker Mark Lebon, she has established a singular reputation both at home and abroad for her work. Regularly profiled in the art and culture magazine Aesthetica, as well as Acumen, the magazine of the Galerie Joseph in Paris, her wide-ranging list of clients includes the Abbey Theatre, Brown Thomas, An Post, Sony Music, Universal Music and the Galway Arts Festival What marks her out is a distinctive and energising use of colour, form and often surreal graphic style. Her portraiture tends to be mostly in black and white. 'I see myself as a photographer who makes art,' she says, explaining how her love of colour is instinctive, 'a place where I can express myself and create my own world. It has endless possibilities and combinations, and each one has a story to tell.' Her favourite colour is blue. 'I almost always start my pictures with blue. I love being in the studio on a dull day and working with a vivid blue. It transports you to a new reality.' Draped mini dress by Lara Barrett @bylarabarrett; lime tights by Pamela Mann via Tights Dept, @tightsdept; lime heels by River Island; yellow beaded bag by Eela via Zeda the Architect Blue silk and knit dress by Cosima Augustin, @cosima_augustin; blue metallic earrings by Iskin Sisters at The Collective; crystal boots, stylist's own Sculptural leather dress by Siobhan Curtis, @siobhancurtis; red leather gloves by Izabela Z via Zeda the Architect, @izabela_z_dublin, @notzeda; white floral earrings by Kybalion Jewellery via The Collective; saffron satin loaders by Tela via Beautiful South, @tela09official@ Polka dot bomber by Monki, @weekdayofficial Her exhibition Make the World Go Away at Atelier Now in 2021 displayed her compelling visual arrangements and intriguing storytelling skills. Everyday objects in strange placements – a tiny pink staircase going nowhere on a blue background, a supermarket wire basket forlorn on a solid red background, a green clothes peg on an undulating base – make these images a conversation with objects. 'It was a response to the visual overload of work and about creating your own world,' she says. READ MORE Her many portraits have included activist Sinéad Burke (for the cover of the Observer magazine), actor-director Antonia Campbell Crawford, singer CMAT with whom she has worked for years, and President Michael D Higgins, for which she was shortlisted for the Zurich prize in 2022. It now hangs in Áras an Uachtaráin. CMAT. Photograph: Sarah Doyle This shoot, prompted by her interest in the work of Dublin stylist Eoin Gavin, is a joint personal project rather than a commercial one. 'I wanted to do something with Irish fashion with freedom and experimentation. I feel it is essential to get things fresh and open. I love working with models and casting; I see them as artists and treat them as such. Abby [the model in this shoot] is great company, playful and open. It's important to make space for people to bring part of themselves, and I feel that is something that I do.' The clothing, selected by Gavin, includes pieces by avant-garde designers such as Cosima Augustin and Laura Barrett, recent graduates from Limerick School of Art and Design, textile designer Sadbh O'Neill, knitter Ariane Sloan of University of Ulster, along with high-street finds. Doyle's composition, colour and gaiety encapsulates it joyful spirit. 'I am more interested in style than fashion,' she says. Purple hat by Kadiju via Zeda the Architect, @kadijuofficial Multicoloured fringe skirt by Lily Pilgrim, @ blue tights from Tights Dept; black Victorian-style boots by Loewe; and blue ostrich feather bag by Sorcha Ó Raghallaigh Multi colourexd ring Rothlu from The Collective Her influences are wide ranging – she cites photographers like Diane Arbus and Sarah Moon as inspirational, and admires how much Moon, a former model, could capture the essence of a garment. 'I photograph every day. I absolutely love it and it's an addiction that I just can't get over. The thing about photography is that you have to take pictures all the time to find the one you want.' Her next project, focusing on the Irish draught horse, is to feature in a French photographic magazine later this summer. Her images of the animals, capturing movement, muscularity and shape, are commanding. 'I have a passion for the Irish draughts and started taking pictures of them at the Dublin Horse Show just before Covid. What I find appealing about them is their combination of strength and gentleness, beautiful in any creature. [Such projects] give me some respite working away from commercial work.' Photographs Sarah Doyle @sarahdoylephotographer Styling Eoin Gavin @ Hair and make-up Lisa Redmond @lisaredmondz Styling assistant Genevieve Fakunle-Bakare Model Abigail @MorgantheAgency
Time Out
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
Osteria Mucca
✍️ Time Out Sydney never writes starred restaurant and bar reviews from hosted experiences – Time Out covers restaurant and bar bills, and anonymously reviews, so that readers can trust our critique. Find out more, here. There are a lot of beautiful dining rooms in Sydney – the kind that, when you step inside, whisk you away to another world; where thoughts of to-do lists and Everest-like piles of laundry melt away like lemon granita under the Amalfi sun. Bennelong, tucked within the city's white sails, is one of them. So too is the coastal kitsch of Sean's in Bondi. Osteria Mucca, a charming trattoria from the Continental Deli crew that opened in April this year, is another such room. Found on Newtown 's happening Australia Street, the 50-seat Italian restaurant had a past life as a butcher. Those 115-year-old forest-green-and-white tiles are the originals. Candles flicker on top of white tablecloths, Art Deco-style vintage lights hang from the ceiling – creating the perfect dinner-date glow – and vintage plates jazz up the walls. This is the work of Sarah Doyle, co-owner and creative director of Paisano & Daughters, who has a knack for creating venues with their own soul. (It just takes one peep into siblings and neighbours – eclectic fisherman's den Mister Grotto, honey-hued plant celebration Flora, and Continental Deli with its big Euro energy – to fully appreciate her talent.) The room feels like an occasion, so we bypass the Limoncello Spritz and Mucca Martini in favour of a glass of Sella & Mosca's sparkling from Sardinia, poured (and appreciated) tableside. Cheers. The timeless space isn't the only thing I'm a big fan of Leading the kitchen is Janina Allende, who ran the pass at Sydney favourite Pellegrino 2000 for more than two years, and also spent time on the pans at Alberto's Lounge and Bar Vincent. At Osteria Mucca, Allende is spotlighting regional Italian classics, with home-style recipes and handmade pasta. In a nod to the restaurant's former life – and because the group knows their way around meat (Osteria Mucca shares DNA with the award-winning Porteño) – they also do all their butchery in-house. FYI – 'Mucca' means 'cow' in Italian. But we start with land and sea – a riff on puntarelle alla Romana, which sees ribbon-like curls of the slightly bitter, crunchy and cool puntarelle coated in a punchy anchovy dressing tempered with creamy, veneer-white buffalo mozzarella. So good. Meanwhile, hunks of pickled cauliflower, carrot and onion rest atop a smooth, nutty fava bean dip doused in olive oil, and are best mopped up with a crusty ciabatta roll that the team source from Brickfields. Next comes our cotechino – a dish that tastes both new and familiar. Soft, house-made pork sausage meat fragrant with cinnamon, clove and nutmeg rests on a bed of slow-cooked buttery-sweet lentils and vegetables. It's adorned with a vivid salsa verde, chewy mustard fruits and delicate shavings of horseradish. Originating from northern Italy, cotechino con lenticchie is traditionally eaten on New Year's Eve; the coin-shaped lentils symbolising wealth and prosperity. I say to our waiter it tastes like Christmas, and he says it's a hit then, too. Also a hit: our bottle of 2022 Montesecondo Rosso sangiovese from Tuscany that's cherry-red and lovely with soft tannins. Ping-pong-shaped balls of ricotta gnudi, so soft you can cut them with a spoon, sit in a pool of browned butter and topped with crisp sage leaves and thin shavings of lemon rind that cleverly cut through and lift. This, and whatever season of Survivor, and you can stick a fork in me – I'm done Formidable pastry chef Lauren Eldridge is behind the desserts at Osteria Mucca (and the three other Paisano & Daughters venues), which features house-made gelato (right now it's grapefruit); cassata with ricotta, chocolate and candied fruit; and bonèt alla Piemontese – a chocolate and amaretti custard topped with marsala Chantilly. If I wasn't stuffed like a, well, gnudi, I'd go for one of those. On this Tuesday night, the room hums with songs my grandparents would have danced to, the clink of glassware and the laughter of friends. There's not a table free. I say goodbye to the team, pull on my coat, step into the fresh night air – and glance back one last time. For a few hours it was all about that bellissimo dining room, those knockout gnudi and the person across from me. That's the power of a great restaurant. Now, back to life admin.
Time Out
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
This charming new Italian spot by the Continental Deli crew is now open in a old Newtown butcher
Osteria Mucca, a 50-seat Italian restaurant by the Continental Deli team, has opened on Newtown 's lively Australia Street, joining also-new siblings: sunshine-warm veg diner Flora and seafood party Mister Grotto. Meaning "cow" in Italian, the charming trattoria is housed in a former butcher shop and is serving up regional Italian classics and home-style recipes, including handmade pasta, beautiful charcuterie and cuts from its in-house butchery. Leading the kitchen at Osteria Mucca is head chef Janina Allende, who's bringing a wealth of experience from running the kitchen at popular Pellegrino 2000 for more than two years, as well as spending time on the pans at Alberto's Lounge and Bar Vincent. 'Her vision for Mucca centres on creating honest, carefully crafted dishes that highlight regional flavours, with a deep commitment to technique, seasonal produce and knowing the origins of every ingredient,' the team has said. Opening menu highlights include pickled vegetables with fava bean purée; gnudi with brown butter and sage; lamb tartare with rocket and pecorino; veal tongue with salsa verde; and house-made sausage. Florence's famous T-bone steak, bistecca alla Fiorentina, is also on the menu, and big enough to share between two. And we'd find it hard not to finish with a scoop (or three) of gelato. Drinks-wise, expect wines produced by small, family-run Italian vineyards, alongside party-ready aperitivo cocktails and digestivi. Just like all of Paisano & Daughters' venues – which also include the brand-new boutique Australia Street Suites – the design at Osteria Mucca is a knockout, thanks to co-owner and creative director Sarah Doyle. Forest-green-and-white chequered floors are complemented by vintage lighting, crisp white tablecloths and tiled walls. Walking into the light-filled space feels like taking a step back in time – it's one of the most beautiful dining rooms we've seen lately.
