Fifty-six Irish writers have contributed new short stories, essays and poems to this anthology inspired by art from the National Gallery of Ireland collection. It includes work by acclaimed figures in contemporary Irish literature such as Colm Toibin, John Banville, Roddy Doyle, Colum McCann and Seamus Heaney. Each of the writers has selected a picture and used it as a setting-off point to explore ideas about art, love, loss, family, dreams, memory, places and privacy. Both the artworks and the literary responses to them are vibrantly diverse. The works range from paintings by old masters such as Caravaggio, Rembrandt, El Greco and Velazquez to pictures by Claude Monet, Pierre Bonnard and Gabrielle Munter, and by Irish artists such as Jack B. Yeats, John Lavery, Gerard Dillon and Paul Henry. Published to mark the 150th anniversary of the National Gallery of Ireland, this beautifully illustrated book is edited by Janet McLean, Curator of European Art 1850-1950 at the NGI.

56 original contributions by some of Ireland's contemporary writers writing about Ireland's national collection of art

About the Author
Janet McLean is Curator of European Art, 1850-1950, at the National Gallery of Ireland. She grew up in Co. Down and was educated at Trinity College Dublin and the Courtauld Institute of Art. She has previously been a curator at the Watts Gallery, Compton, the Palace of Westminster and the Royal Academy of Arts, London.

Reviews
'Beautifully produced ... a perceptive, original and enjoyable anthology' - Irish Arts Review
'A winner. It's a treat in pictures and words' - Independent.ie
'Scintillating ... a delightful concept, a gift if ever there was one ... an entertaining, often charming, and in every way compelling composite' - Cassone
'A varied, vivid anthology ... Some writers offer personal anecdotes and memories about visits to the gallery. Some are inspired directly by the subject matter of a painting, and some use it as a jumping-off point to create a piece that is separate but related in some way' - Irish Times
'As much a tribute to the depth and range of contemporary Irish writing as it is a wordy love song to the artworks that illustrate its thick and creamy pages' - Sunday Times
'An impressive roster of writers ... what comes through most strongly is the sense of intimacy between writers and paintings' - Daily Telegraph
'Concise essays with sumptuous prints of the paintings ... Seamus Heaney's last poem is a highlight' - Sunday Telegraph



Book Information
ISBN 9780500517567
Author Janet McLean
Format Hardback
Page Count 232
Imprint Thames & Hudson Ltd
Publisher Thames & Hudson Ltd
Weight(grams) 720g