Presidential interest in local Liam Lynch centenary exhibition
Artworks, based around the personal letters of Liam Lynch, were shared with President Michael D Higgins by artist Dolores Lyne at Áras an Uachtaráin.
Dolores Lyne, the artist and grand-niece of Liam Lynch, the Chief of Staff of the Anti-Treaty IRA, initially debuted the ‘ To The Letter’ exhibition in Fermoy in April as part of the centenary events marking Liam Lynch’s death.
Debuting at the Coal Shed at Blackwater Valley Shopping Centre in the town, Dolores’s work followed the personal letters to his brother Tom, a priest in Australia, back to the locations they were written and met the descendants of those who has sheltered him in safe houses and provided sanctuary.
According to Dolores, the letters, dated 1917 to 1923 were discovered after Tom died and a trunk of his possessions was sent to Ireland.
Taking inspiration from the places and the letters themselves, the exhibition included a host of local aspects such as nearby settings and local stories depicted using large, creased, foldable canvases mimicking the format of the letter.
ÁRAS VISIT
President Higgins recently invited Dolores to Áras an Uachtaráin to show him some of the artworks which were exhibited in Fermoy in April, inspired by the life and death of Liam Lynch.
Dolores was joined on Friday last at Áras an Uachtaráin by Gerard Shannon, author of the new Liam Lynch biography ‘ Liam Lynch: To Declare a Republic’ together with John Foley, producer and director of the new documentary film about Liam Lynch’s last days ‘ The Dying Days’ and her cousin John O’Connor who is a grand-nephew of Liam Lynch.
She also presented a portrait of Liam Lynch to the president while Gerard Shannon presented him with a copy of his book and John Foley presented the President with a copy of his film.
President Michael D Higgins’s father was a comrade of Liam Lynch during the Civil War.
Marking the centenary of Liam Lynch’s death during the month of April, Dolores Lyne, a Killarney native, hosted her exhibition in three parts, with exhibitions taking place at the Coal Shed in Fermoy and at Mitchelstown and Fermoy public libraries.