About the Artist

Louis le Brocquy (1916 – 2012)

Born 1916, Dublin , Ireland. Died 2012, Dublin, Ireland. le Brocquy initially studied chemistry at Trinity, but his art soon took precedence and he left Ireland, travelling through Europe visiting major art museums to educate himself, since then he continued to live primarily outside Ireland, most notably in France. His early paintings reflect his travels in Europe and his art experiences there, as he draws influences from artists such as Edward Manet, James McNeill Whistler, and Edgar Degas. As his work progressed le Brocquy became more aware of the surreal nature of the work. Once produced, the Royal Academy were unwilling to show it, and so along with some contemporaries such as Mainie Jellet and Evie Hone, he helped in the founding of The Irish Exhibition of Living Art, a venue to exhibit contemporary art in Ireland, and a means to draw more attention to contemporary art in general. For much of his life he was preoccupied with the theme of the isolation of the individual, which led to a period in 1945 where he concentrated on the Travelling People of Ireland. As le Brocquy never had any formal training he too felt like the outsider and felt a connection with this specific theme.