National Gallery of Ireland

The National Gallery of Ireland has an important and fascinating collection, covering the main schools of Western painting. Established in the nineteenth century, the Gallery houses pieces ranging from Byzantine icons to twentieth century paintings. In tune with the changing styles in art during the early years of the twentieth century, the Gallery acquired work by artists such as Edgar Degas, Paul Signac, Juan Gris and Pablo Picasso. In addition it holds an excellent collection of works by earlier masters, including Francisco de Goya, Nicolas Poussin, Gustave Courbet and Thomas Gainsborough. This up-to-date and lavish guide presents over 200 works in colour, and includes a short commentary on the most important of these by senior curators at the museum. As well as presenting art from across Europe, this guide is uniquely informative about members of the Irish School, such as James Arthur O'Connor, John Lavery, William Orpen and Jack B. Years. The aspiration to establish a permanent collection of Old Master pictures in Ireland can be traced back at least to the second half of the 18th century. In 1766 the Society of Artists considered the establishment of a permanent gallery in its new premises in William Street, Dublin. Gradually, the collection began to assume the character of a broad, well-balanced survey of European art with a degree of thoroughness which belied the institution's modest resources. Of the many outstanding gallery benefactors was George Bernard Shaw, who bequeathed to it a third part of the royalties of his estate.

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