Birr artist's work on RTÉ Guide cover

By Rebekah O'Reilly

Birr native artist Shannon Bergin is feeling extra festive this year, as her artwork has been featured on the cover of the RTÉ Guide for the holiday season.

The cover art shows an adorable festive scene in Shannon's typical art style - and includes a shop window brimming with toys and gifts.

Taking to social media on Tuesday, Shannon said: "I am impatiently awaiting its arrival and am very excited to see it in real life."

"Birr is apparently a town of Grinches as we couldn't find it stocked anywhere yet so the digital image will have to suffice for now!" She added, poking fun at her inability to get her hands on a copy of the guide in her hometown of Birr.

"It took about 30 hours to complete the artwork," Shannon told the Offaly Independent.

"The editor, Catherine Lee, had seen a similar piece that I had done for an art exhibition, and so we decided to go with something similar to that."

Catherine came across Shannon's work after her book 'Over The Red-Brick Chimney' came in to RTÉ for review, and she instantly knew it would be a perfect fit.

"It was great to work with the team," Shannon said. "It was an absolute joy to work on and brought so much Christmas wonder and magic along as the days got shorter."

The artist extended a huge thanks to Catherine and all the team from RTÉ calling them "excellent", as well as thanking her audience for "all the love and encouragement".

"The feedback has been super - everyone was so excited to see the art. And of course the RTÉ Guide is such a big part of Christmas."

Shannon has also been hard at work on creating art for her website, where she sells calendars, cards, and other art throughout the year.

If you're interested in buying some of Shannon's beautiful artwork, you can go to shannonbergin.com, or follow her on Instagram and Facebook at Shannon Bergin Art.