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Crawford Art Gallery Exhibition
Crawford Art Gallery Cork’s to Host Some Perfect Portraits
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© Enda Bowe, Cybil McCaddy with Daughter Lulu (2018) Overall winner of the Zurich Portrait Prize 2019
© Mabel Forsyth & Mary O’Carroll, The New Age Winner of the Zurich Young Portrait Prize 2019
Cork’s Crawford Art Gallery is hosting the Zurich Portrait Prize 2019 exhibition, in partnership with the National Gallery of Ireland.
Sponsored by Zurich Insurance, this is the fi rst time the exhibition will travel outside of Dublin, with the goal of creating a greater awareness of the national talent on display. The showing will feature the competition shortlist as chosen by an esteemed judging panel.
Enda Bowe’s photo ‘Cybil McCaddy with Daughter Lulu’ was 2019’s overall winner of the prize. He is an Irish artist who lives and works in London. His work is concerned with storytelling and the search for light and beauty in the ordinary.
For the fi rst time ever in 2019, meanwhile, a special competition for younger artists – the Zurich Young Portrait Prize – was introduced. The shortlisted works from creatives
between the ages of 3 and 18, will be on display with the main prize exhibition in Crawford Art Gallery’s historic Gibson Galleries from February 1 until April 13. This is after a public preview on January 31 at 5pm.
The fi rst winner of the Zurich Young Portrait Prize is the photograph “The new age” by Mabel Forsyth and Mary O’Carroll. The 12-year-old cousins from Dublin said in a statement, “This photo, which was a joint effort, is meant to show that most people have both good qualities and bad qualities.”
“Crawford Art Gallery is delighted to partner for the fi rst time with the National Gallery of Ireland on the hugely anticipated Zurich Portrait Prize exhibition,” said Mary McCarthy, Director of Crawford Art Gallery, in a statement.
Sean Rainbird, Director of the National Gallery of Ireland, added: “As the National Gallery of Ireland continues to grow its national footprint, we’re thrilled to bring the Zurich Portrait Prize to Cork. Showcasing portraiture to new audiences at Crawford Art Gallery is a wonderful development for the competition.”
The 26 works shortlisted for the Zurich Portrait Prize are said to demonstrate the exceptional breadth of contemporary portraiture in Ireland and refl ect the huge interest in image and identity. According to the galleries, the artists have embraced a wide variety of media, from painting and photography to video and mixed media, making for an exciting, sometimes unexpected experience for visitors.
Insurance plc, said in a statement: “Zurich is proud to celebrate portraiture with the National Gallery of Ireland and Crawford Art Gallery. It’s been wonderful to introduce a second prize this year and showcase work by artists of all ages.”
The National Gallery of Ireland’s Zurich Portrait Prize, now in its sixth year, is open to Irish artists aged 19 and over and aims to create newfound intrigue and exploration of contemporary portraiture and the possibilities of the medium. The winning artist received a cash prize of €15,000, and a commission worth €5,000 to create a work for inclusion in the National Portrait Collection at the National Gallery of Ireland.
Meanwhile, the artists behind two other highly commended works – Joe Dunne with ‘And Their World of Far and Near Things’ and Salvatore of Lucan with ‘Lucy with 3 hands and me holding onto her leg’ - each collected €1,500. The Zurich Young Portrait Prize winners also received a cash prize of €500.
