Portrait of a President: Limerick artists combine talents in unusual piece of art
President Higgins depicted in blend of charcoal, ink, and music
LIMERICK artists Patrick Stack O’Neill and Enda Griffin have collaborated on a mixed media portrait of President Michael D Higgins and his wife Sabina.
The portrait, drawn using charcoal and chalk, is partially covered with musical notes from the Limerick-born president’s favourite song: Leonard Cohen’s ‘Come Healing’.
Mr Stack O’Neill presented the portrait in print form to Sabina Higgins at the Áras an Uachtaráin Garden Party in June.
He said that having the opportunity to show the portrait to Mrs Higgins was “the icing on the cake”, and was overjoyed by how “engaged and energetic” she was about the piece.
The two artists first met when Mr Griffin was a contestant in a Rose of Tralee portrait competition in 2015, which Mr Stack O’Neill was recording for his short film Connected 2 Each Other.
A group of artists each created a portrait of 2014’s Rose of Tralee, the now-MEP Maria Walsh. Ms Walsh chose Mr Griffin’s portrait as her personal favourite, and the piece was then gifted to her.
A labour of love - and teamwork, this is the first time the artists have ever shared a canvas, which makes the piece that bit more unusual, Mr Stack O’Neill feels. “You know, you’ve got these two artists who’d never shared a canvas in their lives with anyone else,” he remarked.
Mr Griffin, a graduate of Limerick School of Art and Design and a finalist of the Sky Arts Portrait of the Year competition, was the portrait artist for this piece.
He describes portraiture as “all about people and faces and identity”, noting how vital it is to include “something of their essence” in the portraits he creates of people.
Portraiture is a lifelong passion for him, he explains: “Most people draw when they’re children, I just never stopped. It’s just always been a part of what I do”.
In his work, he generally uses either oil paints or charcoal, and due to the addition of the inked music notes in this piece, he felt a chalk and charcoal mix “suited better”.
Mr Stack O’Neill, a Limerick-born UL graduate who is also a self-taught ink artist, or 'inkist', used Indian writing ink and a nib to overlay the sheet music on the piece.
Clare-based traditional Irish music composer and UL graduate Áine Heslin arranged the sheet music used for the portrait.
Explaining how this quirky portrait style came about, Mr Stack O’Neill said he “started to think about music and the importance of it and portraiture. I wanted to go beyond that sort of classical, exact, almost photographic quality of what the person looks like. Sure, you can do that on your phone!”.
The pair began this series of portraits with a depiction of Collette Mackin, who was, at the time, the general manager of the Irish Cultural Centre in London. The song she chose for her portrait was ‘The Streets of London’ by Ralph McTell, reflecting her work as an Irish person in London.
Mr Griffin said that, due to their style of artwork, the portrait will “last for years”.
He is excited about the prospect that the significance of the portrait will change with time, saying: “In 100 or 200 years time, it will take on a different meaning”.
As for whether or not they will continue with this series of portraits, Mr Griffin comments that he is currently focused on his PhD, but neither artist rules out the possibility of further instalments.
The artists hope to present the original portrait of President Higgins and his wife “some time down the line”, although plans for a presentation have not been finalised.
They are keen to have the musical element of the piece interwoven with the presentation to encapsulate the blend of art forms, of both music and portraiture.
President Higgins, who was born in Limerick in April 1941, is expected to be leaving office in late 2025 after two 7-year terms as president - the maximum term allowed for an Irish president.
As Ireland's first Minister for the Arts from 1993 until 1997 and being himself a creative mind as a writer and poet, President Higgins undoubtedly appreciates the art of portraiture, and the skill required to create a piece that combines both music and art to encapsulate human identity.