More Than Murals: Finding Community with the Minaw Collective
Since 2017, I’ve had the absolute joy of being part of the Minaw Collective, an incredible group of street artists from all across Ireland. Minaw was founded in 2013 as an all-female collective and over the years it’s grown into a diverse, supportive crew of fourteen artists. We’re all united by a shared love of street art and a belief in creativity, empowerment, and equality.
The name “Minaw” is a playful, phonetic twist on the Irish word for women, mná, designed to be more accessible to our international friends and members. But it still holds that strong connection to our roots.
What I love about Minaw is how different we all are as mural artists, everyone brings their own unique style, energy, and influences to the table. Yet, when we paint murals together, our work feels like a unified celebration of expression and colour. You’ll see our murals dotted around the country, bold, vibrant pieces that bring public spaces to life.
Over the years, we’ve had some amazing opportunities to paint together as a collective. One highlight was being invited to the St. Brigid’s Festival in Portarlington last year, where many of us gathered to paint side by side in celebration of creativity, community, and female energy. There was a real buzz in the air, people stopping to chat, kids watching in awe, and the sense that we were contributing something to the town. Another standout moment was our Minaw takeover at Kildare Village. We were commissioned to create large-scale murals across the front of their flagship stores, bringing colour and character to the renowned shopping destination. It was a brilliant experience to showcase our individual styles while coming together as a unified voice in a very public, high-profile space.
One of my favourite things we do as a collective are our jams, basically street art meetups where we gather at legal walls and paint together. These are always highlights for me. There’s something really special about being in the moment, trying out something new just for the sake of it, with no client brief, just for fun. The chats, the laughs, the tips shared over paint splatters… it's honestly magic.
And beyond the painting, Minaw is a proper support network. We help each other out with everything, pricing murals, mural contracts, project advice, dealing with clients. It’s the kind of behind-the-scenes camaraderie that keeps us all going. And when we’re not painting? We’re probably out or planning the next creative adventure.
Being part of Minaw has given me more than just opportunities to paint, it's given me a community. One that lifts each other up and makes the world a bit more colourful along the way.
Images below of some murals I painted at Minaw Collective events
