Architect Shigeru Ban, fashion designer Iris van Herpen, and actor Jeremy Irons walk into a farm. They are there, in southwestern Ireland, it turns out, for an annual gathering devoted to craft and design called Making In, the brainchild of Joseph Walsh, a furniture designer whose family has cultivated this pastoral property in County Cork since the 18th century.
Irish designer and furniture maker Joseph Walsh in his workshop in Fartha in County Cork.
The self-taught woodworker started making furniture here two decades ago, when he was in his early twenties. Before long his sculptural designs in wood and resin caught the eye of collectors like the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, who in 2017 commissioned two dozen of Walsh’s Enignum chairs for their home at Chatsworth House.
The Stone Vessel is one of several structures on Walsh’s farm commissioned from Dublin architects O’Donnell + Tuomey. It was built by Japanese masons from stone found on site.
The same year, Walsh founded Making In, which is open to the public (the next one is September 5–6) and centered on a lecture series curated by Glenn Adamson. “It’s about challenging boundaries between disciplines,” Walsh says, “and getting the conversation going.”
Walsh’s idea of a “maker” is loosely defined. Last year’s edition of Making In, held inside his workshop, included prize-winning potter Jennifer Lee, race car designer Horacio Pagani, and art collector Domenico de Sole. Irons, who has a castle nearby, was there to interview legendary kabuki actor Shikan Nakamura VIII, who inaugurated the farm’s new Hedge Theater, designed by Dublin architects O’Donnell + Tuomey, with a performance.
A custom Enignum Canopy Bed, made of ash, was on view during the 2024 Making In event. Behind it, the display shows participants, including architects, designers and musicians.
Making In attendees are invited to share meals with the participants and see Walsh’s gravity-defying pieces in production. Last fall he and his team were puzzling out the complex mechanics of a 20-foot-tall ring-shaped sculpture destined for the World Expo in Osaka.
Darina Allen, founder of the Ballymaloe Cookery School in Shanagarry, was a speaker at last year’s Making In. The school offers free tours of its property, including the herb garden.
This story originally appeared in the May 2025 issue of Elle Decor. SUBSCRIBE
Ingrid Abramovitch, the Executive Editor at ELLE Decor, writes about design, architecture, renovation, and lifestyle, and is the author of several books on design including Restoring a House in the City.
