Woman who died while swimming off Old Head named locally as Cathy Hughes

Tragedy has befallen West Mayo following the passing of Westport native Cathy Hughes died tragically while swimming in Clew Bay over the weekend.

Ms Hughes, a talented artist who hailed from a well-known Westport family, died after she got into difficulty while swimming off Old Head Beach near Louisburgh.

On Sunday, July 21, Ms Hughes was taken from the water after the alarm was raised at approximately 4pm.

Members of Westport and Louisburgh Order of Malta, who had been attending the Louisburgh Sheep Show, and local lifeguards were amongst those who attended the scene and gave their assistance.

Her body was then conveyed to Mayo University Hospital in Castlebar.

Born into a family of 13 children, her art was heavily influenced by the landscape in the West of Ireland and by her family’s Irish craft and knitwear business Carraig Donn Industries.

Over the years she hosted several successful art exhibitions and regularly attended the Burren College of Art.

She was also a member of a prominent local art club in Galway city, where she had been based for many years. Prince Albert of Monaco’s private art collection includes some of her works.

In 2021, she launched an exhibition called The Aran Series at the Westival arts festival in her hometown of Westport.

“Art is visual and abstract. Visual is like words, it’s concrete, it’s factual, but abstract is deeper, you have to touch on your emotions and feelings, and lay that on the canvas through colour,” she said at the launch.

Her funeral details have not yet been announced.