Colin Davidson, R.U.A.

Original canvas. A few minor frame abrasions near centre of extreme lower edge. The work appears in very good overall condition with strong passages of impasto, ready to hang. No signs of retouching under ultraviolet light. Unframed.
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To a troubled Ireland, Friel brought the gift of poetry. Twinkling with devilish wit, his works, laced with hope, soothed a divided nation, where the poetic magic of his words inspired rare moments of escapism. Born in 1929, in the hamlet of Knockmoyle, northwest of Omagh in County Tyrone, Friel discovered his muse from his window, drawing literary inspiration from the voices and songs, the rhythms and patterns, and gentle Irish lilt of a country he would always call home. As a child, Friel spent his summers with his mother’s family, holidaying in Glenties in County Donegal. In later years, this small, Irish idyll would become the inspiration behind ‘Balleybeg’, the literary land where Friel based most of his dramatic works. Into this fictive sphere, Friel poured mystery and myth. Only in Balleybeg would you find tranquillity in violence, passion in apathy, and peace in the midst of clamour, but it was these bewitching paradoxes, these dreamy, complex tales of love and truth that earnt Friel the title of ‘Ireland’s Chekhov’. Amongst his most celebrated works were The Freedom of the City (1973), Translations (1980) and, of course, the exquisite Dancing at Lughnasa (1990). A man of mischief, of quiet wanderings and silent curiosity, he wished to move his audiences, to provoke thought and stir emotion, and ‘set a quiet bell ringing in their heads’; a bell that would ring out long after the final curtain.

The present work was painted at Friel's house in Greencastle, Donegal. It was one of the first portraits Davidson made, the very first being of the singer, Duke Special. Portraits of Basil Blackshaw, Roddy Doyle, Kenneth Branagh and Ciaran Hinds are some of the other subjects painted in this particular cycle.