Aseries of art pieces portraying the struggle for survival aboard the “coffin ships” on which 1.5 million Irish escaped the Great Hunger are now on display at the Knights of Columbus Museum in New Haven, Connecticut. The exhibit, Fleeing Famine: Irish Immigration to North America, 1845-1860, includes six oil paintings of the harrowing, often-deadly conditions on such vessels, … [Read more...] about Connecticut’s Coffin Ship Art Exhibit
Art
A Global Artist’s Irish Roots
A centenary symposium was held at London’s Royal Academy of Arts in April to honor artist Sir Sidney Nolan (right), an Australian with Irish roots who called himself a “citizen of the planet.” An avid traveler, Nolan spent time in Europe, Africa, Asia, and Antarctica. His refusal to be geographically tied down became the calling- card of his creative endeavors. The one-day … [Read more...] about A Global Artist’s Irish Roots
Francis Bacon Painting Hits $51.8m Bid
A triptych painting of George Dyer, the lover and muse of Irish-born figurative artist Francis Bacon, sold for $51.8 million at a Christie’s auction for contemporary works in May. The painting, once owned by children’s author Roahl Dahl, a close friend of Bacon’s, spent the last 25 years in the private collection of French actor Francis Lombrail and was originally slated to … [Read more...] about Francis Bacon Painting Hits $51.8m Bid
Weekly Comment: Irishman Matthew Brady & the Founding of American Photography
Today is World Photo Day, celebrated for the 177th anniversary of the French Academy of Sciences announced the invention of the daguerrotype. This article has been excerpted and adapted from "Portraits of a Nation at War" (October / November 2013). _______________ Thanks to Mathew Brady and his team of photographers – including Irish immigrant Timothy O’Sullivan and Scottish … [Read more...] about Weekly Comment: Irishman Matthew Brady & the Founding of American Photography
First All-Ireland Sand Sculpting Competition
The first ever All-Ireland sand sculpting competition will take place in August at the 30th annual Duncannon Sand Sculpting Festival on Duncannon Beach, Co. Wexford. Featuring both professional and amateur sand sculptors, fireworks, beach games, and live music, the competition will also try to break its own record for the number of sand angels created in a day, which they set … [Read more...] about First All-Ireland Sand Sculpting Competition