Paul Henry, R.H.A., R.U.A.

The Dawson Gallery, Dublin

Dublin, Trinity College, Paul Henry 1876-1958, 1973, no.86, with tour to Ulster Museum, Belfast.

S. B. Kennedy, Paul Henry, 2007, no.372, illustrated p.170.

STRUCTURE Original canvas. There is what appears to be a fold line along the upper edge, apporx a cm. from the top of the canvas. This is probably where the canvas was originally folded over the stretcher. This has since been put onto a larger stretcher, exposing the overlap. There is a superficial abrasion to the lower portion, to the right of the figure's foot, with minimal paint loss. Some varnish discolouration, may benefit from a light clean. ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT Under UV light, there is some retouching to the top edge, corresponding with the area of the fold and above, where the artist's original workings appear to have been strengthened. There is a minor touch to the bottom of her dress. FRAME In a painted wooden frame with linen inset.
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Last seen in 1973 and dating from circa 1912-15, the present painting is a major work by Henry to emerge on the market, exuding those qualities in the Achill peasantry that so fascinated the artist: 'Achill spoke to me, it called to me as no other place had ever done'.  He portrays a lone woman walking slowly towards us with heavy steps; her shoulders hunched against the chilling breeze that whips through her headscarf and crisp white apron. The cool tones of her blue dress are echoed in the white-washed cottages and pale skies, enhancing the sense of loneliness. In terms of composition and scale, the Achill woman is a monumental figure, pushed forwards in the picture plane, and dominating the image; yet one cannot shake the feeling that she is at the same time a vulnerable and isolated character. With her downcast eyes, weather- and time-worn face, she infuses the image with a sense of pathos. Paul Henry’s painting dwells on mankind’s unequal contest with nature on the beautiful, but unforgiving Irish island of Achill. The woman’s determined, plodding pace and rigid posture suggest that while man may never conquer the rocky soil, bitter winds, and crashing waves of Achill, he will endure.

Achill Woman, with its carefully applied brushstrokes, cool blue colour scheme, and emphasis on realism, is a representative piece from Henry’s work on the island. By the time Henry made the decision to relocate to Achill, he had already established his compositional technique and paint-handling skills, but needed inspiration for subject matter, which he duly found. Unlike many of Henry’s paintings from this period, his palette focuses on blues and greens rather than his more characteristic earthy browns and russet reds. Achill Woman also embraces his belief in the ‘unimpeachable authority of the individual’ and marks the beginning of Modernism in Irish art. While a forward-looking painting, the subject matter, monumental figures, and honest examination of rural life display Henry’s admiration for Millet, Thoreau’s self-reliance, and John Synge’s folkloric writing. Henry’s brushstroke and methodological approach to painting also show an influence of Whistler that would come into fruition during his later purely landscape paintings.

Henry found a profound beauty and poetic romance in the people of Achill, who inhabited a barren, rugged landscape and struggled to make a rocky soil fertile.  Henry had first come to Achill in the summer of 1910 for a two-week holiday; once there, he felt a deep and spiritual connection with the land and its inhabitants. Henry impulsively tore up his return ticket and tossed the fragments into the salty Atlantic. For the next seven years, despite severe winters, financial hardships, and the strain on their marriage, Henry and his wife lived and worked this isolated island, relying on the hospitality and kindness of the local residents. Henry saw Achill as a sort of Hibernian Arcadia but not as a lucrative career move, writing in his memoirs that I did not expect to make much money out of Achill…But I was in a place I wanted to live in and as I had never wanted anything, and if that is not a rosy prospect, I don’t know what is. In reality, this move was extremely opportune and the popularity of images such as Achill Women made Henry the most successful Irish artist in the 1920s and 1930s. Even when Henry relocated to Dublin, he did not shake the influence of Achill and continued to paint scenes of Irish life for the rest of his career. Henry’s Achill paintings spoke to the people of Ireland during the political and social upheaval of the early twentieth century, but their earthy beauty and touching simplicity makes them timeless.