The Joxer rebellion
'Joxer's song, Joxer's song - give us wan of your shut-eyed ones': Harry Clarke's spin on Joxer Daly from Sean O'Casey's 'Juno and the Paycock', on display in Dublin City Gallery, The Hugh Lane
'A darlin', a daarlin'," you can almost hear Joxer Daly cry as the Juno and the Paycock ne'er-do-well stands proud in this delicate watercolour by one of Ireland's most significant artists, Harry Clarke.
Clarke is best known for his unforgettable stained glass creations and this painting is actually part of the preparatory work for his final masterpiece, The Geneva Window.
Finally completed in 1929, this vibrantly glowing world is filled with famous scenes relating to 20th-century literature by Irish writers, playwrights and poets, and it was designed as a gift for the League of Nations from the Irish Free State.
However, it was never received as there was some official disquiet about some of Clarke's representations. The same year it was finished, Clarke was suffering from severe overwork and visited Switzerland, where he was diagnosed with tuberculosis and died there less than two years later.
This is finally on public display for the first time along with three other watercolours from The Geneva Window preparations; The Demi-Gods from James Stephens' book; The Weaver's Grave from Seamus O'Kelly's book and A Cradle Song from Padraic Colum's poem.
They feature in an impressive exhibition in the Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane (www.hughlane.ie). As explained by this display's title, Recent Acquisitions 2005-2007, this is a showcase of donations and purchases over the past few years and features major works by the likes of Brian Maguire, Fergus Martin, Sean Scully and Francis Bacon. But check out Clarke's watercolours.
- Sophie Gorman
