REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT THE OPENING OF THE EXHIBITION FRANCIS BACON: A TERRIBLE BEAUTY
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT THE OPENING OF THE EXHIBITION FRANCIS BACON: A TERRIBLE BEAUTY DUBLIN CITY GALLERY
A Ard Mhéara, a Shoilsí, a chairde uilig, tá an áthas orm bheith i bhur measc ar an ocáid taitneamhach seo. Táim buíoch díbh as an gcuireadh agus an fáilte a thug sibh dom. Inniu agus go dtí mí na Márta támuid ag déanamh céiliúradh ar saol ceann des na h-ealaíontóire Éireannacha is cumasaí agus is tabhachtaí, Francis Bacon. Tá súil agam go mbainfidh gach cuairteoir sult as an taispeántas seo.
Lord Mayor, Excellencies, distinguished guests I am delighted to be here with you this evening to open this exhibition marking the life's work of Francis Bacon who was born a hundred years ago this day in this city. My special thanks to Director Barbara Dawson, of the Gallery, for the invitation to what I know is a very special occasion for the Dublin City Gallery. In fact the exhibition Francis Bacon: A Terrible Beauty is an invitation to Dubliners and to all Irish people to get acquainted or more deeply acquainted with one of the most outstanding modern Irish painters. This exhibition provides a chance to see paintings that have been rarely exhibited together and to ponder that strange genius who became a defining figure for Irish visual arts and possibly one of the greatest figurative painters of the 20th century. There are masterpieces sitting alongside unfinished paintings and slashed canvases, as well as photographs documenting the artist’s life and a previously unseen selection of fascinating items from Bacon’s legendary studio.
His work has been exhibited in the most renowned galleries around the world, not least at a major retrospective in the Tate Britain last year but this is a homecoming. This Gallery has been home to the organised chaos of Bacon’s London Studio since 2001 and has introduced many a visitor to Bacon in a distinctly personal and intimate if unusual way for it gives us direct access to the lived working environment of the man we recall here tonight. When viewed together with the completed works in this exhibition, we get a privileged insight into Francis Bacon, the man and his methods.
The Exhibition is only possible thanks to the generosity of the galleries and individuals who loaned their valuable paintings and to the sponsors who have contributed financially and in other ways to this considerable undertaking. I thank all of the Board members and staff of the Gallery under the leadership of the Chairman, Pat Molloy and Director Barbara Dawson for planning and executing such a formidable exhibition and producing a truly terrific catalogue. I hope the work will be rewarded with huge interest – in fact I am certain it will.
Comhghairdeas libh, agus go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir.