The subject matter of real human suffering does not lend itself easily to art. Ireland's Great Hunger -- the worst demographic catastrophe of the nineteenth century – coincided with the invention of new mass-market periodicals. Niamh O'Sullivan considers the aesthetic, historical, technical and contextual roles of British newspaper illustration in interpreting the story of the Famine. The booklet examines how academically trained artists who had little experience of looking at unfiltered or distanced atrocity became pictorial journalists and found new ways to image a trauma of unprecedented scale and horror.

The Tombs of a Departed Race: Illustrations of Ireland’s Great Hunger (Famine Folios)

History

O'Sullivan, Niamh

Europe

Cork University Press

In 1847, in the British Institution, there hung a harrowing painting 'An Irish Peasant Family Discovering the Blight of their Store', the first and the last known contemporaneous painting of the Great Irish Famine. The painter was Daniel Macdonald (1820-1853), a young Irish artist recently arrived in London. Niamh O'Sullivan's fascinating book reveals compelling new subtexts to the work of Macdonald and re-establishes him as a painter of national importance; it also sheds original light on the social and visual culture of Ireland in the years leading up to and including the Famine. Themes rarely visited by Irish artists – rural agitation, superstition and folklore, as well as aspects of the national character – were given spirited treatment by Macdonald who insinuated such subject matter in to the salons of metropolitan London, to venues distinctly hostile to Irish poverty, hunger and violence. Simultaneously courted by the aristocracy and loyal to his roots in Cork, his responses to the conditions in which he grew up are part of how he became an artist of distinction. This story has not been told before. Macdonald was the subject of an exhibition in Ireland's Great Hunger Museum, and is undergoing a major re-evaluation as an artist. This critical biography is essential reading for anyone interested in Irish art and history.

In the Lion's Den: Daniel Macdonald, Ireland and Empire

Arts & Photography

History & Criticism

This is the first full-length history of Kilmainham Jail, one of Ireland's most visited tourist sites. It was a powerful symbol of British rule over Ireland; its residents over the years included the bold Robert Emmet and, of course, it was also the place where the 1916 rebels were taken and executed. The book is written by long-serving archivist, Niamh O'Sullivan, with extensive knowledge of the jail and those who were imprisoned there. The book is lavishly illustrated with many previously unpublished photographs.

Every Dark Hour: A History of Kilmainham Jail

Liberties Pr

Written in Stone is an attempt to record the first-hand links to the people who changed the political landscape of Ireland, before all traces vanish completely. This book includes images of the numerous examples of graffiti left on the walls of Kilmainham Jail by its political inmates from the War of Independence, Civil War and even further back in Irish history. Kilmainham Jail housed many of Ireland's key historical flgures, from the 1798 rebellion right through to the Civil War; political prisoners who were proud to sacrifice their freedom for the cause they believed in. Many of them also left a physical mark on the jail, inscribing their names and other messages on various walls and doorways in the building. Those mentioned in the graffiti in the jail include Robert Emmet, Éamon de Valera, Michael Collins and Richard Mulcahy, among many others. As Kilmainham Jail lay derelict for so long, over the years much of the graffiti has faded or disintegrated, with some having disappeared completely. Written in Stone is a product of years of painstaking research into the graffiti and the (sometimes little-known) people who made them. The book, which contains photographs of many of the pieces of graffiti, discusses some of the heartbreaking messages left for posterity, as well as drawings of the Four Courts and even of Adolf Hitler. It is a unique record of these highly unusual links to the people who changed the political landscape of this country forever. Included is an audio CD by Maurice O'Keefe of Irish Life and Lore featuring comment by Niamh O'Sullivan which was nominated for the PBS radio prize.

Written in Stone: The Graffiti in Kilmainham Jail

Liberties Press

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by O'Sullivan, Niamh. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by O'Sullivan, Niamh

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by O'Sullivan, Niamh. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

The Tombs of a Departed Race: Illustrations of Ireland’s Great Hunger (Famine Folios)

In the Lion's Den: Daniel Macdonald, Ireland and Empire

Every Dark Hour: A History of Kilmainham Jail

Written in Stone: The Graffiti in Kilmainham Jail