Field Exchange Festival
Creative Agriculture for Thriving Communities
Explore the festival itinerary and various events at Brookfield Farm on September 5th – 7th, 2025
FIELD EXCHANGE Festival
September 5th-7th 2025
Brookfield Farm, on the shores of Lough Derg, County Tipperary
The 2025 Field Exchange Festival took place at Brookfield Farm on 5th and 6th September 2025, showcasing creativity, collaboration and learning emerging from the project.
We rounded out the whole event with a celebratory Field Exchange lunch with the Tipperary Food Producers’ Network on Sunday, 7th September.
Set in the working landscape of Brookfield Farm – with its wild edges, hedgerows, and active agroecological practices – our festival inspired, reconnected, and co-created visions for the future of farming and local food.
FIELD EXCHANGE Festival 2025 Itinerary
Day 1: Friday 5th Sept
Field Exchange Symposium: Fields of Possibility Friday
Location: King’s Hill E45 EA09
Day 2: Saturday 6th Sept
Field Exchange Agri Food Festival Saturday
Location: Brookfield Farm E45 W599
Day 3: Sunday 7th Sept
Celebration Lunch with Tipperary Food Producers’ Network Sunday
Location: King’s Hill E45 EA09
Performances 2025
The Company of Trees
The Company of Trees is a music and spoken word performance compiled by Michael James Ford and Philip Dodd.
It successfully premiered at last year’s Field Exchange Festival at Brookfield Farm. It celebrates our long and complex relationship with the forest world through literature and music.
Using some of the great poetry, prose, music and song that trees have inspired over the centuries, the show explores their emotional, aesthetic, environmental and philosophical impact on our daily lives.
By exploring the natural cycle from planting to maturity, The Company of Trees entertained, provoked, and, above all, raised awareness at a time of unprecedented
threat to our woods and forests.
The 2025 edition of The Company of Trees included new selections of poetry, prose and song while still retaining Natalia Hatz’s haunting Forest Quartet as the musical centrepiece.
“Never say there is nothing beautiful in the world anymore. There is always something to make you wonder in the shape of a tree, the trembling of a leaf.” – Albert Schweitzer
Artworks 2025
Bull by Gerardine Wisdom
Gerardine Wisdom is an artist and educator based in Co. Tipperary.
Her practice is firmly rooted in her rural location, taking inspiration and using materials from Lough Derg and its shores.
A chance encounter with a farmer and gamekeeper, the ancient craft of rush making, led her to develop an award-winning career over the last twenty years.
The materials for her work are sourced by hand from her location, and their suitability and viability are determined by her and nature’s growing cycle.
Rushes are harvested and dried on shore, following ancient processes. Works are planned from scale drawings, armatures made and a lengthy process of making starts.
For Field Exchange 2025, Gerardine revealed both existing pieces and launched a new work, a Dexter Bull, a specific Irish breed of small cattle that originated in the eighteenth century in Co. Kerry.
Gerardine has exhibited widely in Ireland and collaborated on many festivals and events.
She has won several awards for her work, including the RDS Craft Awards.
Gerardine also teaches the craft throughout Ireland. She has collaborated on large-scale projects with Roisin de Buitlear.
Artworks 2025
Bench with a View
A collaboration between Esther Gerrard (Elements of Action) and the Dry Stone Wall Association of Ireland, to co-design a focused dry stone structure.
The project follows from field exchange 20224 Moss Bench and embodied a holistic ethos recognising the ecological, cultural, and material value of dry stone craft.
Notably, the practice of dry stone walling has received UNESCO recognition as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, affirming its craftsmanship, landscape-shaping role, and ecological importance.
Elements of Action & Esther Gerrard
Elements of Action, the design studio co-founded by Esther Gerrard and Edward Coveney, blends product design, specialist stonemasonry, landscape architecture, and project management into nature-rooted creations. Their work employs locally-sourced materials, stone, wood, metals and merges traditional techniques with contemporary design sensibilities.
Esther brings expertise as a landscape architect and experienced project manager to this site-specific project, envisioning stone walls as contemporary functional elements within regenerative farm settings.
Horseshoe Stone Viewing Bench
– Lough Derg 180
The centrepiece of the exchange was the creation of the Horseshoe Stone Viewing Bench, positioned to frame an uninterrupted 180-degree panorama of Lough Derg. The location chosen stems from the analysis and options for the field exchange 2024.
It lies within the existing field boundary – a showcase of how modern seating can be integrated into the original backbone of farms, where stone walls have defined and protected land for centuries.
The form echoes traditional rural craftsmanship while serving contemporary needs, offering a new destination; a place to pause, take in the landscape, and reflect on the deep cultural roots of place, vernacular materials and dry stone work.
As a structure, it is deeply embedded in Ireland’s rural history, where stone walls have long provided both function and identity in rural life and farming landscape.
Field Exchange Day 1
Friday 5th Sept 2025
Fields of Possibility Symposium:
Creative Farming and Local Food in a Changing Climate
Location: King’s Hill – E45 EA09 Tickets Sliding Scale Cost – €30 individual, €50 NGO €75 salaried |
In the face of climate disruption, biodiversity loss, and economic uncertainty, the Field Exchange Festival at Brookfield Farm offers a vital space for dialogue, creativity, and reimagining our relationship with land, food, and place.
This one-day symposium opened the festival, bringing together farmers, artists, researchers, community food advocates, and policymakers to explore farming as a creative, cultural, and ecological act.
We highlighted the potential of agroecological practices, particularly agroforestry, and explored how art and craft—including dry stone walling and reed and moss-based works—can be meaningfully integrated into farm life.
The event will also share inspiring stories from local food initiatives working to build thriving, resilient rural communities.
Who Is It For?
We welcomed policymakers, public servants, academics, community leaders, farmers, and everyone with an interest in how creativity, sustainability and farming practices relate to climate and biodiversity.
Field Exchange Day 1
Friday 5th Sept 2025
We communed along the shores of Lough Derg for a day of inspiration, connection, and exchange in one of Ireland’s most stunning farm landscapes.
Here’s what we did:
- Panel discussions, breakouts and talks on agroecology, creative farming, climate resilience, and local food futures.
- We heard from Creative Farming Ambassadors – insights and stories from the exchange programme and their experiences of blending creativity with sustainable farming.
- A networking lunch, showcasing the best of local, sustainable Tipperary food and offering time to connect with fellow participants and invited stakeholders.
- We met artists and skilled practitioners behind the featured work—from dry stone wall builders to reed and moss artists.
- We enjoyed a live performance by The Company of Trees, set against the stunning backdrop of Brookfield Farm and Lough Derg. Location: Barn and Sibin, King’s Hill
- Walked the Land: Art & Agroforestry – a guided walk on the lower farm to explore the Field Exchange Art Trail and see how agroforestry is developing. Experience how creativity and ecology meet on this living, working farm
Field Exchange Day 1 - Friday 5th Sept 2025
Symposium Schedule
Time | Length | Event |
10.30 – 11.00 | 30 mins | Coffee |
11.00 – 12.00 | 60 mins | Opening Session |
12.00 – 12.30 | 30 mins | Keynote – Connecting to the Living World.Anja Murray |
12.30 – 13.30 | 60 mins | Lunch |
13.30 – 14.30 | 60 mins | Parallel Session 1 – Facilitated discussion by Trish Taylor ThompsonCreative Farming: Art, Craft & Agroecology on the Land This session will highlight how art, craft, ecological agri-design can deepen connection to land, enhance biodiversity, and inspire people and rural places
|
14.30 – 14.45 | 15 mins | Break |
14.45 – 15.45 | 60 mins | Closing Plenary – Land, Imagination & ActionReflections from the sessions: sharing insights, connections, and emerging themes Call to Action: How we carry this work forward |
16.30 – 17.30 | 60 mins | Company of TreesA music and spoken word performance compiled by Michael James Ford and Philip Dodd. |
17.30 – 18:30 | 60 mins | Art Trail with Designer Esther Gerrard |
Field Exchange Day 2 Saturday 6th Sept 2025
Location: Brookfield Farm E45 W599
Duration: 12-5pm
Tickets: €20 individual. Children go Free
Included:
- Engaging craft and nature workshops
- Sensory farm walks and hands-on learning
- Delicious Tipperary-grown food and diverse food stalls
- Unique craft stalls with distinctive handmade gifts
- Explore commissioned artworks along the Art Trail
- Get involved in agroforestry and dry stone wall demonstrations.
- Connect with the Field Exchange Community of Practice
- End-of-day celebration with a moving and evocative live performance by The Company of Trees. Attendees of the music performance will be transported to our nearby Barn E45 EA09
Field Exchange Day 2 Saturday 6th Sept 2025
Events programme
Living Waterways
With the guidance of local ecology expert and organic farmer Sean O’Farrell, demonstrated the effect of pollution on flora and fauna living in waterways and potential health impacts for humans. Participants learnt how to test for water quality and identify biodiversity in and around waterways.
Conversations amongst the Trees: Farms, Food & Families
Maureen Kilgore from the Irish Agroforestry Forum and artist Hazel Hurley helped us imagine tomorrow’s landscapes — where trees work alongside and on our farms to support farming enterprises, strengthen communities, support families, and protect the environment. Through conversation, we shared stories of resilience, nourishment, and care for the generations yet to come.
Hazel captured our visions in colour as we chat, creating a live artwork of our shared future.
https://www.irishagroforestry.ie/
Hedgerows for Life
Alan Moore from Hedgerows Ireland highlighted the enormous potential of hedges and ditches, especially when managed more loosely than is currently popular. This session identified common hedge plants and the wildlife they support.
Dry Stone Wall Demonstration
A hands-on interactive demo on the traditional craft of dry stone building with Ken Curran of the Dry Stone Wall Association of Ireland. Showcasing techniques and heritage of stone walls, a prominent feature of the Irish landscape.
Traditional Craft Demonstrations
CELT – Centre for Environmental Living and Training
Kate Burrows of West Country Willow provided short basketweaving workshops and displayed a range of her wonderful basket creations.
Sean Walsh showcased his greenwood furniture and sugan chair-making demonstrations, including the ever-popular traditional rope-making techniques.
Foraging tutor Olwyn Williams guided an hour-long wild food walk and talk.
Forester Julius Silvan and Martina Finn hosted a mindful woodland biodiversity walk, offering participants an opportunity to explore local woodland ecology, the natural beauty around us, and the relationship between nature, mindfulness, and health and wellbeing.
Hive Poetry Recital
Poets featured in the second issue of Hive Poetry Journal – a collection of nature poetry edited by Grace Wells – recited a selection of poems that invoke a richer, more engaged relationship with the natural world.
https://www.hivepoetryjournal.com/
Art Trail
Local artist Gerardine Wisdom wove an especially commissioned artwork for Field Exchange – a life-sized Dexter bull – from Lough Derg rushes, installed on display at the lakeshore along with some of her previous works. We explored the artworks with Gerardine and learned about the process, from hand-harvesting the rushes to creating the finished piece.
https://www.facebook.com/gerardine.wisdom/
Big Explore
We explored Brookfield Farm – a sustainable farm situated on the shores of Lough Derg, operated by Ailbhe Gerrard, a farmer and beekeeper committed to environmentally responsible agriculture and craft production. The farm operates under organic principles and regenerative practices, promoting biodiversity and soil health. Brookfield produces award-winning raw Irish honey and crafts handmade beeswax candles using traditional methods. Ailbhe also grows heritage grains and oilseeds and actively advocates for rural resilience, food systems awareness, and environmental education. The farm exemplifies modern ethical farming that respects both tradition and innovation.
Field Exchange Day 3 Sunday 7th Sept 2025
Celebration Lunch with Tipperary Food Producers’ Network
Location: King’s Hill, Upper Brookfield Farm (E45 EA09)
Duration: 13:30–16:30pm, with optional artwork visit
Tickets: €50 (Individual)
We enjoyed the produce from the Tipperary Food Producers’ Network, prepared by celebrity Chef Valentine Warner.
- 13:30 – 14.00 arrive at King’s Hill, park, welcome
- 14:00 introductions and pre-lunch refreshments
- 14:15 lunch served
- 16:00 lunch close
- 16:30 Optional Visit to artworks on the lower farm by the lakeshore/ or King’s Hill artworks.
Part funded by DAFM + Tipperary Food Producers
Useful information
- Parking: We offer parking facilities and toilets close to the festival sites. A steward will be present to direct parking.
- Attire guidelines: Events will take place outdoors – dress appropriately for the Irish weather.
- Accessibility: Both Festival locations are working farms with uneven surfaces and moderate inclines. Farm lane tarmac is suitable for wheelchair and mobility scooter users. Wheelchair and mobility scooter users may require assistance.
- Accommodation Options: If you would like to stay in the area, before or after a Field Exchange or visit, check out the Tipperary Tourism accommodation link on the Tipperary.com website.
