Beschreibung:

GIRLS AND DOGS Daniel O'Neill (1920-1974)
Signature: signed lower left; titled on reverse; also numbered [No. 24] on exhibition label on reverse Medium: oil on board Dimensions: 18 x 24in. (45.72 x 60.96cm) Provenance: Waddington Gallery, Dublin, where purchased by the parents of the present owner Exhibited: Literature: In this vibrantly coloured scene, three girls hold, and interact, with a collection of dogs; from those nestled on their laps or in the crook of their arms, to a larger companion who happily receives ... a pat on his head. The composition is unified by O'Neill's use of bright, sky and turquoise blues, moving from left to right across the canvas, and repeated on the sleeve, dress, and face of the respective figures. The layered and often thickly applied paint is characteristic of O'Neill's technique. This is particularly noticeable in this canvas through the rendering of the girls' hair, where patches of ochre and gold catch the eye; O'Neill also uses the palette knife to suggest the different materials of the girls' clothes. Writing about the artist in 1946, Cecil Ffrench Salkeld noted that texture was 'one of O'Neill's strongest weapons, and it is a weapon that he uses with great subtlety', and that is certainly evident in this painting. 1 Although ostensibly engaged in movement, there is a sense of stillness to the three figures; their downcast eyes suggest that each is in rapt concentration. The ambiguity of the dogs (are they stuffed toys, or real animals?), and the marionette-like features of the centre and right hand figures lend a somewhat surreal atmosphere to the painting. As O'Neill's art developed from the 1950s onwards, this uncanny air was embraced, finding full expression in his depictions of figures in landscape settings. The subject and colouring of Girls and Dogs is similar to other works exhibited by O'Neill in the mid-1950s, such as Girl Fiesta (AIB Collection). A comparable work by the artist, Three Children (deVeres, 2013), is less finely rendered, but repeats the motif of three children with animals. The hand-carved Waddington frame is a testament to the relationship between O'Neill and the well-known Dublin gallerist and art dealer, Victor Waddington. In 1945, O'Neill was taken on by Waddington, and several solo exhibitions of his work were held there through the 1940s and 1950s. With the income from the Waddington Gallery, O'Neill was able to focus on his painting without distraction; having previously worked as an electrician and housepainter in Belfast and London. In addition to solo exhibitions in Dublin, O'Neill's art was shown in London, Belfast, Montreal and other North American cities. Dr Kathryn Milligan October 2017 1. Cecil Ffrench Salkeld, 'Daniel O'Neill, A Critical Appreciation', Envoy 1:1, December 1949 more