Talented Laois crochet artist shortlisted for national circular award

A Laois artist has been shortlisted for a national award, recognising her eco efforts to reuse materials.

Courtney Murray from Mountmellick is a fibre artist who transforms reclaimed yarn and fibers into unique wall hangings and sculptures, emphasising circularity through creative reuse. 

She is a finalist in the Creative Circular Award by the new national platform for the circular economy, called Circular.ie 

Courtney is heading up to the award ceremony this Wednesday, September 24 where she will learn if she has won.

She spoke to the Leinster Express / Laois Live.

“I’m just really excited and delighted to be included. I still don’t know who nominated me, it’s a great honour,” she said.

Courtney will be familiar to many in Laois as a crochet class tutor with the LOETB, teaching it in libraries all over Laois and Offaly. 

She also creates crochet clothing and fine art pieces, with her next exhibition in the Dublin Fibre Fest at the prestigious Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA) this October.

Courtney at an exhibition of her work with communities in the Dunamaise Arts Centre. 

She is passionate about preventing waste both in her own work, and in her classes.

“You can’t get away from acrylic yarn, so I try to reuse it rather than it going into the bin to end up in landfill or in rivers. In my classes people throw out small bits so i collect them. Real wool can be very pricy, it’s not accessible to everybody. People starting off in crochet, I don’t want to be sending them off to buy a €20 ball of wool. So instead I encourage them to reuse it in sustainable ways . Not to let it get to the end of its life cycle.

Her collaborative community projects with groups like LOETB and The Dunamaise Arts Centre engage participants to contribute individual crocheted pieces, fostering inclusion and shared storytelling.

The person who nominated Courtney said that “the bright and vibrant colours seen in Courtney’s works brings life into a somewhat scary world. We need more joy and excitement in our society and these works emulate that.” 

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Launched last September 2025, Circular.ie is Ireland’s new national platform for the Circular Economy. They will announce the winners of their first awards this September. There are six categories each with six finalists, with Courtney the only Laois person in the mix.

Circular describes the awards as recognising “ordinary individuals making an extraordinary impact by promoting reuse, repair, recycling, and sustainable living in their communities”.

Follow Courtney Murray on Instagram