Bog Bothy launches in Clara to celebrate peatlands architecture

A unique architectural and cultural experiment was launched last Thursday in Clara as the Irish Architecture Foundation, and 12th Field, officially unveiled the Bog Bothy, a purpose-built shelter and exhibition celebrating Ireland’s complex relationship with its boglands.

Launched as part of the Bog Trotters Festival (June 20–22), the event marked the culmination of more than two years of research, design, and collaboration. Set against the landscape of Clara Bog, the Bothy served as both a physical structure and a platform for dialogue, blending architecture, art, ecology, and community voices.

At the heart of the project is the Bog Bothy itself — a crafted shelter designed by architects Evelyn D’Arcy and David Jameson of 12th Field. Drawing from the visual and material language of the Irish peatlands, the structure was co-created with communities from Offaly, Louth, and Meath, embodying a shared vision of sustainable placemaking.

Below students from Scoil Bhride at the Bog Bothy in Clara

The launch event featured a rich public programme, including panel talks, bog walks, hands-on workshops, and live performances, all exploring themes of climate action, heritage, and the evolving identity of the boglands.

An exhibition onsite delved deeper, offering a reflection on labour, memory, and environmental change, with striking photography by Shane Hynan and drawings capturing the layered histories embedded in the peat.

Adding a living dimension to the project was an Artist in Residence, a creative practitioner embedded in the boglands to respond to the landscape and its people through new, site-specific work.

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Clara is just the beginning. The Bog Bothy will continue its journey across Ireland’s midlands, with its next stop set for Girley Bog, Co. Meath in August, expanding the conversation around architecture, ecology, and the role of community in shaping future landscapes.