The National Museum of Ireland has opened an exhibition that offers a fresh viewpoint on the GAA, Ireland's greatest sporting association.
The exhibition's items, some of which date back to the 15th century and up to the present, show how the GAA has influenced social history, design, and popular culture. The public is invited to participate in the multimedia exhibition by contributing their own recollections. Although the GAA was originally founded in 1884, the earliest items in the show are a hurling ball manufactured in the 15th century from matted cow hair and plaited horse hair.
Photos of the 1915 Camogie squad from Co. Waterford and the De la Salle hurling team from 1905 are included in the show from a Waterford viewpoint. The display also includes a handcrafted tweed camogie costume that Maeve Gilroy wore in the 1960s, an extremely advantageous decade for Antrim camogie. The exhibition also includes a 1969 sketch of camogie garments by fashion designer Neill Mulcahy. The prioritisation of norms and customs over athleticism has historically caused irritation with camogie clothing, as it does with much of the clothing worn by female athletes. The example provided by Néillí is her recommendation for the design of the camogie uniforms.
'GAA: People, Objects, & Stories' is the name of the exhibit of the exhibition, which has debuted at the National Museum of Ireland - Decorative Arts & History - at Collins Barracks. Dr. Siobhán Doyle, the NMI's Curator of Glass, Ceramics, and Asian Collections, developed and produced it. She is also the widely recognised author of 'A History of the GAA in 100 Objects,' which was released last year.
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