42 by 36in. (106.7 by 91.4cm)

Title: PORTRAIT OF PADRAIG PEARSE
Note: George Collie was born in Monaghan and but moved at an early age to Dublin where he was educated first at St. Kevins School, Blackpitts, Dublin and later at the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art. He won the Taylor award in 1927 and travelled to London and Paris. On his return he set up a studio and his own school, behind Whyte's Galleries, in School House Lane off Molesworth Street. Collie was a regular exhibitor with the RHA and garnered important commissions, private, public and ecclesiastical throughout his career.In 2009, The National Gallery of Ireland acquired The Midday Meal, c.1927 by George Collie affirming the artist's importance in the context of Irish art. The present work also reinforces his importance as a portrait painter with this significant commission from The Irish Club in London.The portrait shows Pádraig Pearse in his barrister's wig and gown, against the background of ruins of Dublin and the 1916 Proclamation of the Irish Republic, which he wrote.

oil on canvas

signed lower left