The Friends lectures will take place in Cork Public Museum, Fitzgerald's Park, Mardyke Walk, Cork, T12VOAA. Street parking is available on Mardyke Walk. All welcome however places are limited so advance booking is essential on friends@crawfordartgallery.ie or on 021-4907864.
Tickets cost €10, students go free with a valid I.D.
Dora Maar in a Blue Hat by Pablo Picasso taken at Picasso: From The Studio exhibition, National Gallery of Ireland. Image courtesy of Áine Andrews.
In 1932 Picasso was both celebrated and wealthy as a major 20th century artist. His personal life however was to become ever more complicated.
By 1935 his young mistress Marie-Thérèse had given birth to a daughter, and although delighted to be a father again, the idea of divorce from his wife Olga was dropped almost immediately, due to the repercussions regarding ownership of his work.
Exhausted by events he began to write poetry but he also returned to his previous life of meeting up with friends at the Café in the evenings. So it was that a friend introduced him to a successful young photographer called Dora Maar and there followed a stormy and tortured love affair and some images that are among the most wrenching in the history of art.
Picasso said: I paint the way some people write an autobiography. The paintings, finished or not, are the pages from my diary.’
William Blake, The Ancient of Days, 1794. British Museum, London / Public domain.
William Blake (1757-1827) counted among his influences, and friends, the Cork-born artist James Barry and they shared many of the same views on the role of public art, heroic imagery, and revolution. In advance of William Blake: The Age of Romantic Fantasy (16 April - 19 July), a forthcoming exhibition at the National Gallery of Ireland, join Dr Michael Waldron as he explores the work of these visionary and radical artists.
The Traditional Lacemakers of Ireland. Photo courtesy of Evelyn Leon Núñez.
In the summer of 2025, an incredible project was initiated, engaging a group of traditional Irish lacemakers. The aim was to improve the documentation and information relating to the lace pattern collection held at the Crawford Art Gallery. Join documentation assistant Evelyn Leon Núñez, Veronica Stuart and the Traditional Lacemakers of Ireland to learn more about this incredible project.
Mainie Jellett (1897 - 1944), Abstract Composition, c.1929, Collection Crawford Art Gallery, Cork
For Irish artists at the dawn of the 20th century, Modernism was more than a style; it was a challenge. How could a nation on Europe's periphery find its voice amidst revolutionary turmoil, where its identity was constantly being reconstructed and reshaped? This talk explores how Irish artists navigated this new era, transitioning from observers to innovators.
We trace the expatriate engagement of Roderic O’Conor and William Leech, the radical Cubism imported to Dublin by Mainie Jellett and Evie Hone, and the surrealist explorations of Mary Swanzy. We also examine the nationalist response through Harry Clarke’s Arts and Crafts mastery, concluding with the expressive power of Jack B. Yeats and Louis le Brocquy. Together, these artists didn't just adopt a style, they forged a distinct visual language that redefined Irish identity.
Dervla Murphy. Image courtesy of Dr Ethel Crowley
Dr. Ethel Crowley was a close friend of Dervla Murphy, the renowned travel writer. In this talk Ethel will discuss Dervla's global travels, writings and legacy and what she was like in person. Ethel has edited a collection of Dervla's writing's called 'Life at Full Tilt' (Eland, 2023).
The Friends lectures will take place in Cork Public Museum, Fitzgerald's Park, Mardyke Walk, Cork, T12VOAA. Street parking is available on Mardyke Walk. All welcome however places are limited so advance booking is essential on friends@crawfordartgallery.ie or on 021-4907864.
Tickets cost €10, students go free with a valid I.D.
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