Western Procession by Mainie Jellett. Photo, National Gallery of Ireland
Pioneering Irish Modernists are celebrated in a major exhibition which opens on April 10 at the National Gallery of Ireland. Mainie Jellett & Evie Hone – The Art of Friendship brings together 90 works. It explores their experiences in the 1920’s where they studied with the French Cubists André Lhote and Albert Gleizes in Paris and the south of France. traces their careers back to Ireland and highlights the early convergences and later divergences in their styles. The paintings, stained glass and preparatory drawings reveal how both women were trailblazers in Irish art while remaining connected to conventional themes like religion and landscape. Hone (1894-1955) was an early pioneer of Cubism before turning to stained glass, Decoration by Jellett (1897–1944) was one of the first abstract paintings shown in Ireland when it was exhibited at the Society of Dublin Paintings group show in 1923. The first joint exhibition of their work since 1924 runs until August 10.