ARTISTS GO INCOGNITO FOR CHARITY
A total of 25 County Wexford artists are among 1,000 talented people who have donated a miniature art piece to go on sale for €50 at Incognito, an exhbition in aid of the Jack & Jill Foundation which is taking place in the Solomon Gallery in Dublin this weekend from Friday, April 6 to Sunday, April 8.
Many of the country’s top contemporary painters and some famous artists from the UK have contributed to the show, giving buyers a chance to purchase a valuable piece of work by a well-known artist, worth thousands of Euro, for a very small price.
Among the renowned artists who have donated works are Tracey Emin, Rhona Byrne, Martin Gale, Dede Gold, John Kelly, Peter Curling, Mo Kelly, Nick Miller, Ed Miliano, Abigail O’ Brien and Richard Gorman.
The exhibition comprises over 1500 original, postcard-sized art pieces donated by artists from around Ireland and overseas and works on the basis that the identity of the artist who painted a particular piece is kept secret and is not revealed until after it is sold.
The County Wexford artists include David Begley, Angela Brierton, Joanne Donohoe, Larry Dunne, Jackie Edwards, Betty Furlong,, Martina Furlong, Niamh Furlong, Tamara Gangnus, Barbara Glynn, Alyssa Hanbidge, Elaine Kane, Anne Marie Kearns, Sheila Kissane, Jorika Kohl, Kate Kos, Maria Levinge, Bettina Meyler, Darragh O’Connell, Jan Ryan, Tara Savage, Amanda Usher, Hanneke van Ryswyk, Gwenda Wallace and Mary Wallace.
Previews of Incognito 2018 are taking place on Wednesday and Thursday, April 4 and 5 and the public can also view the collection in advance online at www. incognito.ie and www. jackandjill.ie. The paintings will go on sale at 10 am on Friday and will be available to buy on a first come first served basis in the Solomon Gallery, beside the Westbury Hotel off Grafton Street over the weekend.
Last year, Incognito raised over €80,000 to fund nursing care at home for 350 sick children who are involved with the Jack and Jill Foundation which has supported over 2,240 young people and their families throughout Ireland since 1997, including 114 children from County Wexford.
The charity operates a service 365 days a year, has no waiting lists and mobilises an army of 750 nurses and carers around the country.
Hugo Jellett CEO of the Jack and Jill Foundation was joined at the launch by Joanne Doyle, the organisation’s liaison nurse for County Wexford along with Nurse Fiona Callaghan.
Mr. Jellett said the organisation has been overwhelmed by the number of artists who donated paintings and described the standard of the work as ‘simply silencing’. He said he is delighted that Incognito provides a platfordm to less well-known artists to display their talent amongside big names.