ONLINE MATERIAL Chapter E MATE IN R L IA N L O O N L L IA IN R E MATE 7 irish Art in the 19th and 20th Centuries on his return to ireland in the late 1840s, he made John Hogan (1800–58) most of his living doing portrait work. There are Hogan lived and worked in Rome from 1824 to three fine marble portraits by Foley in dublin City 1848, where his Sleeping Shepherd and Drunken Hall. The 5.5m o’Connell memorial (1843), the Faun made his reputation as a marble carver drummond memorial (1843) (Fig. 7.1) and the of distinction. He created three versions of The davis memorial (1852) are all draped in classical Redeemer in Death or The Dead Christ in flawless togas, as is the bronze o’Connell in the Crescent in Carrara marble. The 1829 carving is in St Teresa’s limerick. Carmelite Church in dublin. in 1833 he carved a version for St Finbarr’s (South) Church in Cork and in 1854 he produced one for the Basilica of St The Dead Christ John the Baptist in newfoundland. Subject This is a life-size stone carving of the figure of Fig. 7.1 Christ in a horizontal pose after his body was The marble taken down from the cross. This is a deliberately portrait sculpture emotional portrayal of the scene (Fig. 7.2). of John drummond in Composition dublin City Hall by John Hogan The body is laid out horizontally except for the head and shoulders, which have been raised to draw attention to the face. Style Hogan worked in the neo-Classical style. His sculptures featured emotional and dramatic poses in classical proportions, using draperies to add formality and movement. CHAPTER 7 onlinE materiAl: iRiSH ART in THE 19th And 20th cenTuRies 1 Fig. 7.2 The Dead Christ, 1833, by John Hogan, marble sculpture, St Finbarr’s (South) Church, Cork Technique and materials o’Connor worked hard as an artist all his life, exhibiting at the Royal Academy in london and the The work is in white Carrara marble, which has Royal Hibernian Academy in dublin. A Landscape: been used for sculpture since Roman times. it Homeward Bound (Fig. 7.3) is typical of the is a fully three-dimensional stone carving, finely scenes and genre pieces he painted for exhibition, finished in a realistic style. but he met with only moderate financial success and died in humble circumstances in Kensington. Influences Hogan had his early training in the newly opened School of Art in Cork. When he travelled to Rome he was greatly influenced by the neo-Classical style, then popular in Europe. most of his sculptures have classical drapery and are formally posed. James Arthur O’Connor (1792–1841) o’Connor was the son of an engraver and printseller in dublin. His father’s collection of dutch landscape prints may have influenced him in Fig. 7.3 A Landscape: Homeward Bound by his choice of subjects. He used dramatic light and James Arthur o’Connor, national Gallery of shadow in his work, which usually showed man as ireland, dublin insignificant in the face of nature. 2 APPRECiATING ART: section 1 – onlinE materiAl ONLINE MATERIAL ART IN IRELAND Fig. 7.4 Thunderstorm: The Frightened Wagoner, 1832, by James Arthur o’Connor, oil on canvas, 65cm x 76cm, national Gallery of ireland, dublin Thunderstorm: The Style Frightened Wagoner o’Connor painted in the Romantic style, which emphasised emotion and drama. Subject Techniques The painting depicts a dark, dramatic landscape where a bolt of lightning lights up a horse and Smooth brushwork and careful detail, combined carriage in the middle ground (Fig. 7.4). The with dramatic contrasts in light and dark, are power of nature (God) is emphasised against the characteristics of o’Connor’s work. weakness of man. Influences Composition o’Connor was self-taught, but he was influenced This composition is based on the proportions of by dutch landscape painting and the Romantic the rule of thirds. A large tree takes up the left- movement. hand third of the composition. The shying white horse makes the focal point where the lower third and the right-hand third meet. The lightning Frederick William breaking through the cloud and the raging river flowing under the bridge on the right-hand side Burton (1816–1900) are secondary elements to increase the drama Born in Corofin, Co. Clare, Burton trained in the of the unfolding story. dublin Society Schools and exhibited with the CHAPTER 7 onlinE materiAl: iRiSH ART in THE 19th And 20th cenTuRies 3 Hellelil and Hildebrand, the Meeting on the Turret Stairs Subject This painting illustrates a scene from an old danish ballad where forbidden lovers meet on the stairs of a castle, snatching an intimate moment (Fig. 7.6). Fig. 7.5 The Aran Fisherman’s Drowned Child by Fredrick William Burton, national Gallery of ireland, dublin Royal Hibernian Academy from the age of 16. He worked for a few years as a miniaturist and travelled around ireland with his friend George Petrie, drawing and painting watercolours of landscapes and scenes from the lives of the ordinary people. The Aran Fisherman’s Drowned Child (Fig. 7.5) was painted following a trip to the Aran islands. He was among the first artists to visit the islands. Burton spent five years in Bavaria from 1851 working on the painting collection of maximilian ii. When he returned to london he became interested in the ideas of Ruskin and the Pre- Raphaelite movement. His most famous painting, Hellelil and Hildebrand, the Meeting on the Turret Stairs, is from this time. in 1874 Burton was appointed director of the Fig. 7.6 Helellil and Hilderbrand, the Meeting on national Gallery in london. He was so involved in the Turret Stairs, 1864, by Fredrick William Burton, watercolour on paper, 95.5cm x 60.8cm, national the development of the gallery that he had little Gallery of ireland, dublin time for painting in his later life. 4 APPRECiATING ART: section 1 – onlinE materiAl ONLINE MATERIAL ART IN IRELAND Composition A diagonal movement from the top left-hand corner connects the faces and arms, drawing attention to the tender embrace. This is balanced by the angle of the sword. The two boldly coloured figures against the dark background dominate the space, but it is the movement that catches the eye. Colour The rich ultramarine blue of Hellelil’s dress and the bold orange/red of Hildebrand’s patterned tunic have a wonderful impact against the muted browns and greys of the stone. Style This painting is in the style of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood: a detailed, realistic treatment of a romantic historical subject. Fig. 7.7 Feeding Pigeons, 1860, by nathaniel Hone, national Technique and materials Gallery of ireland, dublin This painting is a finely detailed watercolour, which After a few years working as an engineer, he Burton developed from a series of preparatory went to Paris in 1853 to study art in the ateliers sketches. it is painted in brilliant colours built up of Adolphe Yvon and, more importantly, Thomas in tiny brushstrokes, a technique he learned when Couture, who was a Romantic figure painter painting miniature portraits in his early career. He influenced by the new trends in Realism, led by used an opaque gouache paint in the highlights the artist Gustave Courbet. He had a conventional and to add texture on the armour and helmet. training, copying in the louvre and drawing from the human figure. Couture emphasised drawing Influences and painting skills so that an artist could put down first impressions quickly and with confidence. Burton’s early work followed the then current interest in irish tradition and culture. His later work in 1857 he moved to Barbizon near the Forest of was in the style of the Pre-Raphaelites. Fontainbleau, where he worked among the plein air painters, including Corot, millet, Harpignies and manet. Feeding Pigeons, 1860 (Fig. 7.7), is a Nathaniel Hone painting from this time, where the human figure (1831–1917) is still a feature. Hone’s later work rarely includes human figures. Born in Co. dublin on the family estate, St Following his marriage in 1872, he spent most dolough’s Park, Hone was well off and did not of his time in ireland, though he still frequently need to make a living from his work, which travelled abroad. He exhibited at the Royal allowed him to follow his interests more freely. CHAPTER 7 onlinE materiAl: iRiSH ART in THE 19th And 20th cenTuRies 5 Hibernian Academy and became a member of the from the nearest cow to the left of the horizon and academy in 1880. back up through the cloud shadow to the right of the format, emphasising the sense of space in the Hone lived on the family estate in malahide in his painting. later life, where he found the subject matter for most of his work: landscapes, seascapes, boats and farming activities. He also taught at the Royal Colour Hibernian Academy, where he was an influence on Hone used subtle natural colours, often featuring a generation of irish painters. the light and shade typical of the irish climate. The dark green of the pasture in shadow contrasts with the bright light on the clouds. The eye is drawn to Pastures at Malahide the bright yellow ochre distance through the pale highlights of the cows. Subject Style A group of cows is lying in a summer pasture with a dramatic cloudscape in the background (Fig. 7.8). His mature work is in the plein air style that he had learned in France: simple landscapes freely Composition painted with attention paid to changing light and weather.