Celebrating the life and lamenting the passing of Seamus Heaney

The sunshine in Cork cannot dispel the sadness we feel at the passing of one of the ‘greats’ in Irish life. One of our national treasures, Seamus Heaney, died yesterday,

 30 August ’13. A man whom I greatly admired and respected. A wonderful scholar and learned man imbued with the culture and history of his native land. He has left us a rich legacy of poetry and writings on so many aspects of life, culture, history, tradition, relationships, connections and much much more.

He celebrated his 70^th birthday in 2009 and I remember reading how he cherished his farming background and upbringing in Co.Derry. This struck a chord with me as I am also a son of the land, reared on a farm 3 miles west of Listowel, Co.Kerry. I have always loved the rural life and have been fascinated by the contours, textures, colours of the Irish landscape as it changes through the seasons.

In tribute to Seamus I did a small painting to celebrate his 7 decades in 2009. It is a scene from rural Co.Derry which I hoped would evoke memories of his beloved home and farm at Mossbawn. It was an autumnal scene to convey the richness of the landscape, fertility of the soil and the rich harvest of his own work. In the left middle ground there is an oak tree to connect him to the heritage of his native Derry – the oak leaf county. The oak is a symbol of kingship which I felt was appropriate for Seamus – a prince of learning and writing.

I placed the tree in a background of sloping hills and fields as I felt this landscape would reflect the contours and changes in life. It represents a lifetime of work and changes and a fruitful harvest after seasons of toil and labour.

I painted the scene with a golden autumn light filtering across the fields which mingles with the golden stubble of the recently harvested corn. The light also catches the yellows and golds of the autumn leaves and acorns on the oak tree. To include the human changes as we move into the autumn of our lives I put a thin film of white over the grass of the field behind the oak tree to show the whitening of the hair and the ageing process in a man of 70.

The painting is small – 12 x 10 inches and I put a plain cream frame on it. I was very happy with my work and sent it to Seamus as a token of my esteem and respect. The message I wanted to give this hugely accomplished and highly regarded man was how much I appreciated his connection with the land of Ireland and how beautifully he captured the magic and richness of simple folk and everyday lives.

May he rest in peace.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam uasal.                   

Sunny day in Glenbeigh, Co.Kerry

A few months back I was asked to do a painting of Glenbeigh, Co.Kerry by a neighbour who now lives in Cork but is originally from Glenbeigh. She knows that I am from Kerry so that the subject would be close to my heart. Needless to say I was delighted to accept and happily set off to search out the most appealing aspect of this corner of 'the Kingdom'.
It is an area that I know relatively well as my brother worked there for a number of years. It has many beautiful remote spots as you head up into the mountains and explore the hills and valleys around Caragh Lake.
I felt that the best known part of Glenbeigh is by the beach in Rossbeigh so I focused my search in the hills overlooking the bay - Dingle Bay. Eventually I settled on the view from the top of Knockatinna. It gives a lovely view of the waves breaking onto the beach at Rossbeigh and the land as it stretches out along Rossbeigh Creek with Glenbeigh village tucked in under the mountains. Seefin mountain (1,621 feet)  looms in the background and the Macgillycuddy Reeks are just out of view on the right hand side. If you were to continue on out to the left along the beach, climbing the sandbanks as you go, you would reach the farthest out point of Rossbeigh beach where you can look across the water to Inch Point on the other side. From your vantage point on the sandhills you would be looking down on Dooks Golf links and Castlemaine Harbour.
Knockatinna Hill gave me a panoramic view of this spectacular part of Kerry with views towards Castlemaine and Killorglin to the east, Inch strand and the Dingle peninsula directly across the water (in a northerly direction) from me and westwards along the rugged cliffs and hills that skirt the Ring of Kerry as it winds its towards Cahirsiveen.
Rossbeigh is a stretch of beach and land that is very popular with walkers, swimmers, horse-riders and golfers.
 Even though it was April I was blessed with a beautiful sunny day which gave bright clear light on the scene beneath me.
There were beautiful shades of blue and green in the seawater and the light catches the white of the waves as they break on the shore. The soft colour of the sand adds brightness to the scene and it matches well with the colours on the mountains in the background.
                                                     

It is a scene that I greatly enjoyed painting as it captured an idyllic day in Kerry with the beauty of the land, sea and mountains all around.
It particularly pleased me to learn that she was giving this painting to her daughter in law who has emigrated to Australia. It will act as a reminder of the many happy summer days spent on the beach in Rossbeigh when she was a child.           

Breath-taking beauty of the mountains and lakes in Killarney

Recently I did a painting of 'Ladies View' in Killarney, as part of my series of paintings on cancer, and it set me thinking about how getting out into the countryside and enjoying the beauty and calm of the landscape is so good for everybody. Luckily our summer weather has been particularly good so far and it gives me a chance to get out in the late evening to walk and enjoy the scenery around Cork and Kerry.
I had the pleasure of going to the Munster football final in Killarney recently. It hit the right spot in every way - a beautiful day in Killarney, magnificent setting of Fitzgerald's Stadium against the backdrop of the Magillacuddy Reeks and Kerry beating their old rivals on home turf. Killarney always draws a big crowd and even Cork supporters enjoy the trip to the Kingdom.
It was such a glorious day and buoyed by the Kerry victory I decided to savour the beauty of my native county. I strolled around the town for a good while after the match, enjoying the atmosphere and chatting to friends at various 'watering holes' in the town.
The long summer evenings give ample opportunity to get out and stretch the legs so I walked into the national park which is on the edge of the Killarney town. It was a beautiful balmy evening and the scenery was spectacular. Even though it was after 9pm there was a perfect view of the mountains and lakes in front of me. The soft fluffy clouds lingered over the pale blue mountains in the distance and the light captured the hollows and undulations of the mountains and valleys in the middle distance.

In the foreground you could see the darkened shapes of the trees and shrubs growing around the lake shore  which was set off by the shimmering light on the water of Lough Leane.  It was a perfect evening in a breath-taking setting and it made me resolve to get out and enjoy such scenes more often.           

Walking for cancer

This series of paintings has developed many different facets and aspects. When I started out on this theme my idea was to paint cancer patients in different settings to show how it affects people of all ages and from all walks of life and also to use scans of various types cancer to give an inner view into how it grows and develops. So far I have completed 11 paintings in the series which has  taken me two and half years to complete. I feel that I have made good progress at one level and yet I feel that I should have a lot more done at this stage. I started with the idea of doing 20 paintings but as I progress I feel that I could do a lot more and I see new perspectives to paint from.
My latest painting in the series is based on a walk that myself and wife did two years ago to help raise funds for cancer research.We walked from Killaney to Kenmare on a beautiful sunny day. It was ideal walking weather and the scenery was spectacular. The pace was challenging but pleasant as it gave time to chat to the people on the way. I met some very interesting people who would lift your spirits with their attitude to life and how to deal with illness.
I was particularly struck by a man named Páidí from Rathmore which is on the Kerry/Cork border. He is a farmer and he had been treated for prostate cancer. Happily he had been diagnosed at an early stage and the treatment was successful. He was walking to raise funds because he had a brother who had died from lung cancer and a young niece who was being treated for breast cancer.
Since his treatment he said that his attitude to life had changed completely and that now he would 'just grab every moment with both hands and squeeze the best out of it' .
On our way back to Killarney in the evening we were brought by bus to 'Ladies View'. The setting was truly spectacular with a perfect view of the mountains and lakes for miles. There was a golden light on the scene which highlighted the amazing yellows, oranges and browns of the landscape. The depth of field meant that you could see blue mountains further in the distance and the soft white line where mountains and horizon merge. The soft blue sky with a few fluffy clouds completed this breath-taking scene.
                                             
Páidí's words summed it up;
' It is so beautiful that you have to be glad to be alive to see it. Nature is fantastic and we can be fantastic too if we can see the beauty all around us make the most of what we have'.
As a Kerryman I fully concur with his reaction to the beauty of 'the Kingdom' and his attitude to life.
                                       

            

Celtic Influences & Themes

As a teacher of Irish and History naturally themes with a celtic influence spring to mind quickly and easily. This new set of paintings that I have started on have a much more abstract and creative sense to them. They are totally from my own imagination and yet are clearly and strongly influnced by what I teach and read. I constantly 'doodle' on bits of paper and invariably swirling patterns emerge. There is great movement and flow with the lines that form patterns and shapes. Also it is very interesting to twist the paintings around to see what they look like from different angles. It has happened that I prefer a different view of a painting that what I painted it from.

In these painitngs I have used strong primary colours and which I really enjoy using. It is exciting to use contrasting colours to see how they work together and where to put particular colours within the painting.
Recently I was very lucky to get a large supply of paints at a very reasonable price. It means that I have a huge new range of ready made colours to use in the paintings. Ironically in spite of this large range of new colours I tend to go for 6 main colours most of the time.
While there is great freedom and imagination in these paintings they take a lot of slow intricate work to get the shapes and contours right. I fing also that because I'm using such strong colours I have to go back over the painting several times to make sure that the colours are strong enough and can contrast effectively with the darker or lighter shades.
In these painitngs I have used a very dark blue (Prussian blue) as the background. It shows off the strong colours brilliantly and I think of either a huge void in space filled with this colour or else plunging deep down into the ocean to discover whole new forms and shapes of life.
I am amazed and intrigued by how I react to particular colours and how I enjoy the strength and energy of bold colours. I also find that with these colours they demand bold brush strokes, swirling with energy and vitality. They capture the power and allure of my celtic ancestors. Aodh was the Celtic god of Fire so it must be in the genes to use strong brilliant colours to capture that energy.