A Ballad of Jonathan Wade: A motor-bike accident on a frosty road near Clondalkin on 22nd January, 1973, deprived Ireland of one of its most original artists. Jonathan Wade was just 31 years old at the time, but he had already produced work of such amazing quality and variety that he was looked to as a future towering figure in Irish art. It was more than his mastery of painting that impressed: he manifested in his paintings a personal vision that was a scathing critique of the human being and of the environment he engineered.
An Event to celebrate the wonderful artist whose life and work were cruelly cut short by a motor-bike accident in 1973 when he was just 31 years old.
This theatre-based Event consists of
- an exhibition of some of Wade’s original paintings and prints
- a screen slide presentation of more of his work, and
- a catalogue which is being produced and marketed as a 118 page book by Scotus Press
Entrance fee of €10 entitles the attender to all of this. Additional copies of the book can be purchased at the theatre for €10, or subsequently from bookshops or from the Publisher’s website for €12 (www.scotuspress.com)
The Event will be well organised for safety in the face of Covid. A group of 12 will be admitted to the auditorium for each showing which should last for 30 mins approx.
Wade’s work does what all good art should do: it challenges. His paintings demand of their viewers. They’re not easy viewing. They’re not meant to be. They’re meant to provoke. There’s an unbending will at work. The results are paintings that fifty years on are as forceful now as when conceived. Wade made his point. His mark will last.
-Paul Tuthill
Our event intends to reacquaint people with one of the most exciting painters of the last century.
Thanks to
Sorley McCaughey, Fred Lahiff,
Thomas Wade
A complimentary catalogue for the event will include the 1970’s monograph of Wade by Henry J Sharpe.
Cast and Creatives
Morgan O’Driscoll is one of Ireland’s premier specialist art auction houses and is delighted to be associated with A Ballad of Jonathan Wade
The creative team:
For The New Theatre
Anthony Fox
Leanne Willars
Art Agent
Paul Tuthill
For Scotus Press
Pat Pidgeon
Jack Harte
Lighting design
Cathy O’Carroll
Visuals
Eoin Murphy
Booking Info
Book your tickets HERE
Gallery
