Crawford Art Gallery

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social

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Where art and ideas meet across the centuries

We’re transforming our Gallery | Reopening 2028

Visit https://crawfordartgallery.ie/redevelopment-main-page/ to find out more.

Charity No.: CHY 18818 | Registered Charity Number (RCN): 20072926

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 16, 2026, 8:00 PM

On Sunday 1 November from 1pm - 4:30pm, a special painting masterclass with Elizabeth will take place at Bandon Town Hall. This masterclass is a wonderful opportunity to draw on Elizabeth’s skills. It's free to attend, but booking is essential. Book details below!

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 16, 2026, 8:00 PM

Join us on Saturday, 31 October at 1:30pm in Bandon Public Library for an exciting talk, a unique occasion to hear and see Elizabeth as she paints, in conversation with her husband Geoffrey.

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 15, 2026, 4:17 PM

CAG.0669 John Hogan, Hibernia and Brian Boroimhe, 1855, plaster, 167.5 x 83 x 96 cm. Presented, William Horatio Crawford.

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 15, 2026, 4:17 PM

sculpture at the Cork School of Art, he subsequently moved to Rome in 1824, living and working in the ‘Eternal City’ until 1848 when he relocated to Dublin. His health declined after suffering a stroke in 1855, the year he made Hibernia and Brian Boroimhe.

#CrawfordArtGallery #JohnHogan #onthisday

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 15, 2026, 4:17 PM

government in the aftermath of An Gorta Mór (Great Irish Famine) and suggests the hope embodied by an emerging generation. John Hogan (1800-1858) hailed from Tallow, County Waterford and began his career as an apprentice to architect Sir Thomas Deane (1792-1871). Encouraged to pursue training in

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 15, 2026, 4:17 PM

leaves (akin to a laurel wreath). Next to this, a shamrock-adorned crown lies upturned beside a harp and a scroll bearing the inscription: ‘Victoria [?] Brian Boroimhe Regis Hibernia A.D. MXIV’ (Victory of Brian Boru King of Ireland 1014 A.D.). In essence, Hogan’s sculpture meditates on legitimate

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 15, 2026, 4:17 PM

who would become King of Munster and High King of Ireland. Brian, who holds a down-turned sword suggestive of pacifism, gains a foothold upon a resting Irish wolfhound, recalling the Cú Chulainn myth. Hibernia wears a ‘mural crown’ to indicate sovereignty and, by her side, holds a wreath of oak

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 15, 2026, 4:17 PM

Yesterday was the birthday of Irish sculptor #JohnHogan and we're celebrating with this beautiful work!

'Hibernia and Brian Boroimhe' (1855) is among the artist’s most political and imaginative works.

The sculpture depicts Hibernia, female personification of Ireland, with a young boy, Brian Boru,

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 13, 2026, 11:14 AM

CAG.0714 Antonio Canova, Bathing Venus (Venus Italica), c.1816, plaster, 185 x 54 x 56 cm. Transferred, Royal Cork Institution, c.1849. Photo: Jed Niezgoda.

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 13, 2026, 11:14 AM

Today is ALSO the day of a special #HottiesinArt event, where #museumbums co-author Jack Shoulder will be joined in conversation Waterstones by our very own Dr. Michael Waldron.

What better way to celebrate both than with this cheeky view of Canova’s Bathing Venus!

#CrawfordArtGallery #Canova

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 13, 2026, 11:14 AM

It’s time for a cheeky crossover! 🍑 Today is the anniversary of Antonio Canova (1757-1822), the leading Neoclassical sculptor of his generation. The origins of our collection can be traced back to a set of plaster casts of Classical sculpture and three of Canova’s own creations.

The sculpture gallery at Crawford Art Gallery, showing several classical-style sculptures, bright white against the vibrantly painted wall. The one in the middle, the main focus of the photo, is a plaster cast of Antonio Canova's Bathing Venus, seen from the side to give a cheeky side view of her bum to fit the Museum Bums theme.

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 12, 2026, 7:21 PM

Yes, absolutely! We’re lucky to have three if Clarke’s eight illustrations that he did for this edition, and all of them so perfectly embody the stories.

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 12, 2026, 5:01 PM

CAG.0105 Harry Clarke, The Fall of the House of Usher, 1923, pencil and watercolour on paper, 40.7 x 30.7 cm. Purchased, the Artist, 1924 (Gibson Bequest Fund).

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 12, 2026, 5:01 PM

Fun Fact! Not only has Clarke signed and dated this illustration, he also wrote the
above quote from Poe's story on the back.

#CrawfordArtGallery #HarryClarke #EdgarAllenPoe #SpookySeason

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 12, 2026, 5:01 PM

Created for a deluxe edition of #EdgarAllenPoe’s ‘Tales of Mystery & Imagination’, Clarke’s watercolour revels in the body horror of Poe’s story. In the scene, the narrator and Roderick Usher are reading by candlelight when they start to hear sounds by Madeline Usher, who was entombed alive.

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 12, 2026, 5:01 PM

‘Not hear it?—yes, I hear it, and have heard it. Long—long—long—many minutes, many hours, many days, have I heard it…’ 🕷️💀

We’re continuing our #SpookySeason theme with this haunting #HarryClarke illustration of a scene from ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’! 🦇

A watercolour image in primarily weak, watered down colours that has pops of deeper colour; the illustration is done almost in three sections. At the top, two men (whose clothes have the deepest colouring of the whole illustration) lean over a book, with horrified looks on their faces. Below the table their book is resting on, grotesque monsters, bats, flies, and spiders mingle, with gnashing teeth and dripping claws. Underneath them, trying to lift a slab off herself, is a naked, pale woman with a gaunt face. All of the figures are slightly exaggerated and distorted.

The back of the illustration, showing some signs of age, but mostly clear except for two sections of handwritten text. At the top, written slightly diagonally, is 'Yes, I hear it, and have heart it. Long - long - long - many minutes - many hours, many days have I heard it.' This is underlined, and beneath it is written 'The Fall of the House of Usher.' Further down on the page, Harry Clarke has signed the paper, with the year 1923 below his signature.

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 11, 2026, 8:42 PM

CAG.0373 James Barry, The Prince of Wales in the Guise of St. George, oil on canvas, 238.7 x 147.3 cm. Purchased. CAG.0244 James Barry, St. Paul at Tarus, sepia ink on paper, 49.5 x 36 cm. Presented, Mr. N. Orgel, 1955

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 11, 2026, 8:42 PM

for many in 18th century Britain. Infamously, he was the only member ever expelled from the Royal Academy & his controversial views were considered a threat to the political and artistic status quo, despite, ironically, his own hopes of securing royal patronage.

#CrawfordArtGallery #IrishArt

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 11, 2026, 8:42 PM

After moving to London, Barry had a controversial career that marked him as a great but troubled artist. Through his writing and lectures, as well ashis art, Barry expressed a belief in the advancement of human civilization through education and political liberty, beliefs which amounted to heresy

@crawfordartgallery.bsky.social Oct 11, 2026, 8:42 PM

Today is the birthday of Irish artist #JamesBarry!

Born in Cork in 1741, Barry declined to follow in his fathers footseps and become a sailor as he was determined to become an artist. He studied under John Butts, who he credited with giving him a true love of painting.
(cont.)
#onthisday

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