Gorry Gallery • Dublin

Jeremiah Hoad(1924 – 1999)

12. Self Portrait 1942

3. Cover – Celtic Landscape

© GORRY GALLERY LTD. AND JUDITH HOAD

Gorry Gallery

JEREMIAH HOAD(1924 – 1999)

ReflectionsA Retrospective Exhibition

27th September – 5th October 2001

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2. Towards the Blue Stacks, Co. Donegal 1997

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4. Inver Bay, Donegal 1990

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Introduction

It is difficult to do justice to the memory of Jeremiah Hoad. He was a truly remarkablespiritual painter, a complex “celtic cocktail”, deemed eccentric by many and lived a

reclusive yet logical life dedicated to his work.

In discussions with me over the years he often expressed sadness, indeed anger at thetreatment of this planet by some of its inhabitants.

He sometimes painted rainbows in his landscapes – traditionally seen as a symbol of hopethey seemed to calm him spiritually and spur him on to paint sublimely the landscape he soloved.

53. West Kerry, 1989

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Some remarks made by me in the introductions to his previous exhibitions are worthrepeating;

“Immersing himself in the countryside, he conveys to the viewer his own very personalexperience at a given time – with rainbows, ‘moonbows’, sunlight and shade, rainstorms, indeedevery facet of nature carefully observed and celebrated in paint.

His powerful yet sensitive expression of the phenomenon of light has a mystical, almost magicalquality. The artist’s highly original painting technique, evolved over many years, with itsscumbled impasto creating shimmering textured effects together with his constant search for thesublime, make his paintings somewhat unique.

It seems to me that there are three distinct qualities evident in his work, each one in itselfworthy of holding the viewer’s attention; a realism that make his pictures readily accessible; atechnical quality – the hallmark of ‘a painters painter’, and on a different level, a spiritualawareness.”

“His paintings, with their swirling shapes and birds eye views, can disturb thoseunfamiliar with his work. We can vividly recall the expressions of excitement,amazement, even vertigo from the viewers in 1991.

The landscapes he creates with their dramatic imagery are as always his ferventhomage to the earth!”

In later life painters sometimes loose the vigour shown in their youthful work – this wascertainly not the case with Jeremiah Hoad whose last painting completed shortly before hisdeath ‘Celtic Landscape’ (catalogue no. 3) is a true ‘tour de force’.

Slán abhaile JerryJames Gorry

All of the paintings in this exhibition come from the artists studio and span his completecareer.

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Jeremiah, Painter-Man remembered by his wife, Judith

Jeremiah was a single-minded man, clear about the love and commitment we shared, abouthis pride in his children and his tenderness for his grandchildren, but, above all in his

passion for painting.

His single-mindedness brought with it the discipline of daily practice. After the domesticchores of our labour intensive life-style, he would depart for his studio, thirty yards from thehouse to reappear only for his meals, until 6 or 7 o'clock in the evening, six days a week.

On a couple of occasions, with a complete lack of immodesty, he outlined to me where hiswork was leading, how it fitted into the context of the current trends in Art and how itwould one day be regarded. Many of his thoughts have proved accurate and James Gorryplayed a large part in bringing this about by giving Jeremiah two one-man shows, in 1991and 1994. In his Will, Jeremiah said advice should be sought of James about the disposal ofhis work. Hence the current Retrospective show.

Although he was a very friendly person, Jeremiah was not a socialiser and he wasdismissive of the socio-politics of the Art World, seeing it as time and energy wasted thatcould be better spent painting. He also did not care to talk about his work. The paintingprocess he sometimes described as, "like a meditation, sometimes so intense that I end theday not knowing how I arrived at what is on the canvas". He also maintained that anypainting that needed explaining was not well painted. Only once, in the last year of his lifedid he expound outside the family. This was to Manchan Magan on film shown on TnaG –footage that we showed again at the Memorial to celebrate his life.

His work has spoken to many of his love for Mother Earth - may it speak also to you.

Judith Hoad ©2001 author of This is Donegal Tweed (1987), Healing with Herbs (1996), Need orGreed (1999) and innumerable articles on hands skills, herbal medicine & alternativelifestyles, in the press and on radio & television

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Chronology

1924 13th September, born Fife in Scotland. Father Irish, mother Anglo-Scots.

1939 Moved to England.

1941-43 Obtained a county scholarship to Winchester School of Art, where he studied for 2years qualifying as a teacher.

1948-58 Visting lecturer to London County Council, Camberwell School of Art, teachinglife drawing, composition, anatomy, perspective, plant drawing and biology.

Studied painting in London, Paris and Amsterdam.

1958-67 Taught drawing and paintingat the Frank HookerSecondary Modern School,Canterbury.

1962 Married Judith Starke.

1967-81 Moved to rural Wales so thathe could paint and Judithcould write.

1971-76 Lluniau Cymreig WelshPictures - black and white linedrawings, as postcards andprints.

1981 One-man show at Oxford Playhouse Theatre. Settled in Donegal with their 3children.

1987 Painting for cover and line drawings for This is Donegal Tweed by Judith Hoad.

58. The Wee House - Gweedore 1990

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1988 One-man show Sunningdale,Ascot.

1991 May, Exhibition of Paintingsfrom the West of Ireland, GorryGallery.

Featured in Hel Straeon'sfilm The Hoad Family on St.Patrick's Day.

1993 11th June, Radio TelefisEireann radio programme‘Judith, Jeremiah and Jens inthe Rainbow’.

1994 May, Exhibition of EarthEnergies, Gorry Gallery.

1994-99 Annual visits to draw andpaint in the desert towns of Tozeur and Nefta and also the ancient Medina ofKairouan all in Tunisia for several months each time.

1999 Interviewed by Manchan Magan on film shown on Telefis na Gaeilge

13th September, Dies at his home after a working day, Inver, Co. Donegal on his75th birthday.

28th October, Memorial Celebration in the Royal Hibernian Academy, Dublin.

Works by him are in private collections in Ireland, England, Wales, France,Germany, United States of America, Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

Survived by his wife, Judith and their children, Esther, Tito (Titus) & Miffy(Martha) and by 12 grandchildren.

23. The Fairy Tree, Inver, Donegal 1993

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11. Manningham Lane,Bradford c.1955

9. Playtime, Frank HookerComprehensive School,Canterbury, Kent 1959

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1. On Inish Murray 1995

35. Irish Rainbow Camp,Fintown, Donegal 1995

CatalogueMeasurements in inches, height precedes width.

GALLERY I1. ‘On Inish Murray’, 1995

Oil on board 10 × 12Signed.

Illustrated page 13

2. ‘Towards the Blue Stacks, Co. Donegal’, 1997Oil on board 18 × 24Signed.

Illustrated page 4

3. ‘Celtic Landscape’, 1999Oil on board 23 × 45Signed.

Illustrated on cover

4. ‘Inver Bay, Donegal’, 1990Oil on canvas 24 × 36Signed.

Illustrated page 5

5. ‘Goats on a Cliff ’, 1992Oil on canvas 36 × 28Signed.

6. ‘Cliff at Horn Head’, 1992Oil on canvas 36 × 28Signed.

7. ‘Moon Eclipse’, 1993Oil on board 48 × 48Signed

8. ‘Still Life, Fruit and Flowers’, 1997Oil on board 181⁄2 × 233⁄4Signed.

Illustrated page 19

19. Self Portrait 1971

17. Blackheath, London 1953

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9. ‘Playtime, Frank Hooker Comprehensive School,Canterbury, Kent’, 1959Oil on board 141⁄2 × 191⁄2Signed.

Illustrated page 12

10. ‘Bradford, Yorkshire’, c.1955Oil on board 161⁄4 × 201⁄4

11. ‘Manningham Lane, Bradford’, c.1955Oil on board 141⁄2 × 16Signed.

Illustrated page 12

12. ‘Self Portrait’, 1942Oil on canvas 12 × 10

Illustrated inside front cover

GALLERY II13. ‘Place Notre Dame, Paris’, c.1950

Pencil on paper 71⁄4 × 101⁄4

14. ‘Pont Neuf, Paris’, c.1950Pencil on paper 71⁄4 × 101⁄4

Jeremiah Hoad lived in Paris for a year at this time.

30. In a Café, London 1949

27. Study of a Woman c.1961

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15. ‘Hay Making, Hampshire’, c.1958Watercolour on paper 7 × 11

16. ‘Landscape, Hampshire’, c.1958Watercolour on paper 7 × 14

17. ‘Blackheath, London’, 1953Watercolour on paper 9 × 111⁄2Signed.

Illustrated page 14

18. ‘Muckish from Fanad’, 1993Oil on board 36 × 48Signed.

19. ‘Self Portrait’, 1971 (Not for sale)Oil on canvas 20 × 20Signed.

Illustrated page 14

20. ‘The Fairy Tree, Inver, Donegal’, 1993Oil on board 22 × 24Signed.

Illustrated page 11

21. Evening Light on Cliffs, Donegal’, 1993Oil on canvas 28 × 36Signed.

44. The Drummer, 1960/61

41. Singing Rehearsal, 1960/61

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22. ‘Winter Landscape, Cwn Twrch, Mid Wales’, 1977Oil on canvas 36 × 20Signed.

23. ‘Above Dooagh, Achill Island’, 1993Oil on canvas 28 × 36Signed.

24. ‘Banana Tree, The Oasis, Tozeur, Tunisia’, 1996/7Pastel on paper 151⁄2 × 221⁄2Signed.

25. ‘The Medina, Tozeur, Tunisia’, 1996/7Pastel on paper 211⁄2 × 311⁄2Signed.

Illustrated page 21

26. ‘Nezi’s House, Tozeur, Tunisia’, 1996/7Pastel on paper 151⁄2 × 221⁄2Signed.

GALLERY III (Downstairs)

27. ‘Study of a Woman’, c.1961Pencil on paper 6 × 6

Illustrated page 15

28. ‘Windmill, Kent’, 1965Pencil on paper 10 × 8Signed

29. ‘Cour Rohan, Paris’, c.1950Pencil on paper 10 × 7

30. ‘In a Café, London’, 1949Pen and ink on paper 61⁄2 × 4Signed.

Illustrated page 15

31. ‘Female Nude’, 1949Pen and ink onpaper 6 × 41⁄4Signed, inscribedCamberwell anddated 1949.

Jeremiah was ateacher there.

32. ‘Moonlight DonegalBay’, 1988Oil on board 6 × 9

33. ‘Flowers in aPortobello Jug’, 1983(Not for sale)Oil on canvas 16 × 20Signed.

34. ‘Old Turf Stacks,Fintown, Donegal’,1996Oil on board 24 × 30Signed.

56. Morning Mist, 1990

52. Nant-y-llyn fromWernfeudwy in theSnow, 1979

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35. ‘Irish Rainbow Camp,Fintown, Donegal’, 1995Oil on board 18 × 24Signed.

Illustrated page 13

36. ‘Donegal Landscape’, 1994Oil on board 18 × 24Signed.

37. ‘After the Storm, Donegal’,1999Oil on board 24 × 48Signed.

38. ‘Winter in Donegal’ 1996Oil on board 18 × 24Signed.

39. ‘Path to the Studio’, 1998Oil on board 18 × 24

40. ‘Sprats in a Colander’, 1990Oil on canvas 16 × 20Signed.

Illustrated page 22

41. ‘Singing Rehearsal’, 1960/1Pastel on paper 14 × 11

Illustrated page 16

42. ‘String Player Rehearsing’, 1960/1Pastel on paper 11 × 10

43. ‘The Trombone Player’, 1960/1Pastel on paper 13 × 81⁄4

44. ‘The Drummer’, 1960/1Pastel on paper 121⁄2 × 9

Illustrated page 16

45. ‘The Saxaphone Player’, 1960/1Pastel on paper 131⁄4 × 63⁄4

46. ‘The Double Bass Player’, 1960/1Pastel on paper 141⁄2 × 6

47. ‘Tony Coe on Trumpet’, 1960/1Pastel on paper 133⁄4 × 71⁄2

48. ‘Study of Judith’, 1962Pastel on paper 15 × 103⁄4

54. The Strawberry Beds at Bekesbourne, North Kent, 1957

49. ‘Light through the Rainbow’,1989Oil on canvas 28 × 36

Illustrated page 22

50. ‘Judith Feeding Esther’, 1/1/63Pencil on paper 15 × 11

51. ‘Baby Martha’, 13/3/71Pencil on paper 91⁄2 × 93⁄4

52. ‘Nant-y-llyn from Wernfeudwy in the Snow’, 1979Oil on canvas 24 × 12Signed.

Illustrated page 17

53. ‘West Kerry’, 1989Oil on board 24 × 48

Illustrated page 6

54. ‘The Strawberry Beds atBekesbourne, North Kent’, 1957Oil on board 11 × 15Signed.

Illustrated page 18

55. ‘The Fanagoed Valley, MidWales’, 1979Oil on board 201⁄2 × 31Signed.

56. ‘Morning Mist’, 1990Oil on canvas 24 × 36Signed.

Illustrated page 17

57. ‘Gateway, Magdalen Bridge,Oxford’ 1981Oil on board 16 × 12

58. ‘The Wee House – Gweedore’, 1990Oil on canvas 14 × 18Signed.

Illustrated page 10

59. ‘Butcher’s Shop, Llanymddyfri’, 1977Oil on board 9 × 6Signed.

60. ‘St. Dunston’s Terrace, Canterbury’, 1966Oil on board 23 × 26Signed.

61. ‘Town Hall, Llanymddyfri’, 1976Oil on board 9 × 6Signed.

8. Still Life, Fruit and Flowers, 1997

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The Artist working on a pastel, Tunisia

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25. The Medina, Tozeur, Tunisia, 1996/7

49. Light through the Rainbow, 1989

40. Sprats in a Colander, 1990

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The Artist in Tunisia

GORRY GALLERY LTD., 20 MOLESWORTH STREET, DUBLIN 2. TELEPHONE and FAX 6795319The Gallery is open Monday – Friday 11.00 a.m. – 6.00 p.m.

Saturday (during Exhibition only) 11.00 a.m. – 2.00 p.m.www.gorrygallery.ie

Origination and Printing by Brunswick Press Ltd.