Beschreibung:

****THIS WORK IS ON CANVAS AND NOT ON BOARD AS LISTED IN THE PRINTED CATALOGUE**** William Conor RHA PRUA ROI OBE (1884-1968) Beero (1956) Oil on canvas, 66 x 81.5cm (26 x 32'') Signed Provenance: Commissioned by John P. Reihill Snr directly from the artist in 1956; Deepwell, Blackrock, Co. Dublin Exhibited: RHA Annual Exhibition, Dublin, 1957, Cat. No. 19 The National Gallery of Ireland, New Millennium Wing Opening Exhibition of 20th Century Irish Art. January 2002 - December 2003; ''Collector's Eye'' Exhibition, The Model Arts and Niland Gallery, Sligo, Jan/Feb 2004, Cat. No. 3 Literature: ''Collector's Eye'' 2004 Exhibition Catalogue, illustrated p3 'Conor (originally 'Connor') was a working-class Protestant who had Gaelicized his name in response to his encounter with the Celtic Revival in Belfast at the start of the century.' (Fionna Barber, Art in Ireland Since 1910, London: Reaktion Books, 2013) What distinguishes William Conor from other genre painters of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century is the gaiety and happiness evident in his compositions of groups of people. The artist considered himself as a 'portraitist, landscapist and genre painter,' and did not simply want to be categorised as 'the painter of working class life,' his close friend John Hewitt wrote in 1981. (JC Wilson, Conor 1881-1968: The Life and Work of an Ulster Artist, Belfast, 1981) Yet it was in these studies of 'working class life' that the artist immersed himself in his sketches and paintings. It was in this category that he produced his most prodigious output and in the evident jovial atmosphere of the works, it was a focus that he thoroughly enjoyed. He wrote his own assessment of his work 'All my life I have been completely absorbed with affection in the activities of the Belfast people...Being a Belfast man myself it has been my ambition to reveal the Spiritual Character of its people in all vigour, in all its senses of life, in all its variety, in all its passion, humanity and humour...' (Ibid) He is clearly enthralled with his fellow citizens in Belfast and captures this through his use of terms such as 'affection,' 'spiritual character,' 'vigour,' 'passion,' 'humanity,' and 'humour.' Conor believed that the artist should understand 'his own epoch and give expression to that which is happening around him.' (M�ir�n Allen 'Contemporary Irish Artists XIV, William Conor', Father Mathew Record, October 1942). In 2002, Eileen Black wrote 'As regards Conor's position in the local art world, his images of the working classes made him unique among artists in the North; indeed, few painters in the whole of Ireland pursued such genre themes, with the exception of Jack B Yeats and Paul Henry ..' (Irish Arts Review Yearbook, 2002). This painting entitled 'Beero' was commissioned in 1956 directly from the artist and subsequently exhibited in the RHA in 1957 (cat. No. 19). John Reihill Snr commissioned the work due to his connection with Tedcastles the largest coal importer in Ireland in its day. Although the Irish flag flies outside the window it is thought among the family that Conor took artistic license and these workers are in fact Belfast rather than Dublin coalmen. This is particularly likely if one considers works by Conor such as 'The Launch,' 1922, where the placement of shipping and tonal treatment is strongly echoed in the left background of 'Beero.' The British flag in 'The Launch' is replaced here by the Irish flag but the artist's inspirational setting is clearly Belfast. ''Beero'' was the slang term used by coalmen who worked the Docks to describe their break during the day's work which was invariably spent in one of the local pubs located near the quays. Compositionally 'Beero' is strong; the figures are symmetrically arranged and treated in an impressionistic manner. The colour range is effective and there is a restraint in detailing that communicates the scene with immediacy. The flavour of fun and camaraderie is similar to a