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Origins of Irish Fine Arts

Fine art in Ireland has a long history, dating back to the Neolithic period.

There are three types of graves left in the Neolithic Age:

1. Courtyard conical stone mound, characterized by a roofed stone mound promenade. The entire tomb group is located in a group of long stone mounds, some of which are over 45 meters long, found in Northern Ireland.

2. Passage tombs are the most important type of prehistory in Ireland. They are characterized by being concentrated on the top of the mountain. The surface of the cross-shaped stone in the tomb is decorated with a large number of abstract geometric patterns. The Newgrange cemetery in the Boyne tomb is a The most beautiful megalithic cemetery in Europe.

3. The wedge-shaped corridor is small in scale.

At the beginning of the Bronze Age, Ireland became an important metal manufacturing center, exporting metal products to Great Britain and Northern Europe, to France and the Baltic region, exporting crescent-shaped gold pieces that could be worn around the neck or chest, and carved on the sun plate made of gold pieces With decorative patterns. The delicate metalwork of gold earrings, pins, rings and bracelets from this period is very similar to the prehistoric Irish culture and the early Greek Michelin culture.

The art of the early Iron Age in Ireland is mainly represented by metal products, and the number of preserved, but high quality, occupies a particularly important position in the history of Irish art. The origins of later Christian art styles can be traced in part here. Bronze is the dominant metalwork of this period. The “horn pattern” was one of the basic patterns in early Irish art.

From the 5th to the 10th centuries, Irish art achieved outstanding achievements in manuscript decoration, stone carving and metalworking. In Ireland, the use of calligraphy emerged at the same time as Christianity. Christian culture blends Roman culture with Celtic and German traditions.

Irish priests developed a clear and beautiful calligraphy in the Celtic semi-Uncial script, which can be found in hymnal manuscripts from the late 6th century, from which the decoration of Irish manuscripts can be seen, characterized by the use of vermilion. Red magnified the first letter and decorated it with a pattern, a method that continued until the 8th century until the first letter took up the entire page. The most important centre for Irish tint studies is at Trinity College Dublin.

The college holds a Darrow book, a Gospel written after the mid-17th century, and the earliest of the early Christian period Irish locales. Its full-page decoration is a mixture of Celtic, Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean motifs. In addition, Trinity College also has the Book of Kells, the Book of Dima and the Book of Alma.

The monuments preserved in Ireland are not churches but carved ring crosses. Its arms extend out of the ring, its rods stand on pyramidal or conical pedestals, and both the cross and the surface of the pedestal are engraved with decorative reliefs. The earliest crosses in the 7th century are on the Inish-Irvine Peninsula, the most important group of which is at Condona.

The best monument of the 8th century centers on Argenne-Kilkillen, featuring striking decorative reliefs and horn-helix panels on the rings, rods and tips. In the Barrow Valley, a cluster of monuments from the 9th century is characterized by a ringed apex: engraved panels with biblical scenes on the frontal pillars of the cross are succinct and stylized.

Cron McNoyce is probably the most important center of early Irish stone carving. In addition to the cross, there are many tombstones. These tombstones are beautifully designed. The 10th century was the peak of its development. The most complete one is the one preserved in Muradah. Scenes such as the Last Judgment and the Passion of Christ are depicted in high relief.

Early Irish buildings were all wooden and therefore have not survived.

Only in the 10th and 12th centuries did stone buildings generally appear. Although the number of churches is large, they are very small. The best example is the finned stone chapel of Gallerus, shaped like an upside-down boat, without mortar. Of note is the monastery built on the rocky hill of Skelin Mikael in the Atlantic Ocean. The best example of an early stone church is St Kevin’s Church. The building of the monastery is characterized by a round tower – a bell tower and a sanctuary for monks, dating from the late 9th to the late 12th century.

Elaborate decoration was first used in Irish churches in the early 12th century. Cormac Church was the first to introduce the Romanesque style to Ireland; in Cashel it was also absorbed into carving. Romanesque zigzags, human heads, animal prints and local motifs are intertwined in Normandy, as is the case with the convent at Clon McNoyce. The most characteristic Irish-Romanesque carving is the entrance to Kilchen and Cronfett, with a wild, finely decorated line drawing in low relief.

The Anglo-Norman invasion disrupted Irish artistic traditions, and ancient Celtic traditions were robbed of continental styles. Only architecture and sculpture are worth mentioning in the following centuries. Continental Cistercian religious architecture took root in Ireland at this time, and its sites in places such as Meriphon are impressive, and the carvings are a mixture of Irish, French or English traditions.

The Anglo-Normans built early English-style Catholic churches in the 13th century, with the best examples in Cashel, Kilkenny, etc. The main centre of Irish-Norman architecture and carving is in Trimm, with castle ruins, Catholic churches, monastery ruins and statue tombs. Buildings that retain Irish heritage are the Franciscan Friars and Towers.

In Ireland, the Renaissance came very late, first in the form of interior decoration, fireplaces and other small pieces in the English Tudor style, but much of it was destroyed by war, except for Ormond Castle, an Elizabethan manor house. The full effect of the Renaissance was not revealed until the Duke of Ormonde redesigned Dublin in the late 17th century. During the period of great development of civil and public buildings, painting and sculpture had little success, while lesser arts such as bookbinding and glass mosaics flourished in the second half of the 18th century.

At this time, the Arts Centre was in Dublin, and its representative works included the Bank of Ireland, Kilmerham Hospital, Trinity College Library, Tyrone Building, Cran William Building, Powerscourt Building and Leinster Building.

Carlow’s court buildings and Dunlawn’s market buildings are also famous in the 18th or early 19th century. Irish architecture declined in the late 19th century. Notable buildings in Dublin include Trinity College Museum and Kildare Street Club.

The eminent printmakers of the early 19th century, J. Marlton and G. Pietris, produced some excellent etchings depicting Dublin. In Ireland, painting and engraving occupy only a small place in art, and painting has a literary character, as can be seen in the works of W. Oppen, H. Horn and D. O’Neill. Artists with different characteristics and originality after World War II include P. Scott, H. Herron, O. Kelly and I. Stewart.

Irish Literature Irish literature refers to literary works produced in Ireland or written by Irish people. Ireland is a small country, both in size and population, but it has made a huge contribution to world literature that is disproportionate to its national size. The development of Gaelic literature is mainly in the fields of poetry and mythology.