This blog is a personal take on Listowel, Co. Kerry. I am writing for anyone anywhere with a Listowel connection but especially for sons and daughters of Listowel who find themselves far from home. Contact me at listowelconnection@gmail.com
What a difference a week makes; St John’s under cloudy skies in June 2023
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Corpus Christi Processions
This year the feast of Corpus Christi fell on June 8. The tradition is to hold a processsion preceeded by this year’s first communicants on a weekend near the date.
Listowel procession photo from Listowel Girl’s Primary Facebook page
Athea parade photos by Bridie Murphy
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In Kerry Writers’ Museum
Even a short visit to Listowel gives time to take in some of our lovely visitor attractions.
Last week I accompanied Phil to Kerry Writers’ Museum.
Our visitor centre in the square used to be called The Seanchaí. A statue of Eamonn Kelly, Seanchaí, greets visitors at the foot of the stairs.
Phil enjoyed the John B. Keane room. She remembered attending his plays and always enjoying his writing.
I was anxious to show her the Michael O’Connor corner. The beautiful pieces look marvellous under the light in their climate controlled cabinets.
When you look closely at the above details on the St. Patrick’s Breastplate scroll you will be amazed at the intricate detail achieved by this super talented local artist. I hope many many Listowel people visit the exhibition this summer. You will be amazed.
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Varying Shades of Dolly
Brendan O’Sullivan rocking the denim and stetson look
Most people accessorised with a guitar, this man brought a skateboard
I met Phil adding a few sparkles to her outfit
If your footwear was too undollylike, people in the Costume Fixing marwquee had plenty of high heels to cowboy boots available.
Jimmy Deenihan as you have never seen him before.
The queue moved along slowly but in good form. Everyone had to be photographed and braceleted for the record.
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Meanwhile in Ballybunion
Ballybunion Golf Club annual captains’ weekend was a huge success raising funds for seven local charities.
This is Susan Corr. She was in Kerry Writers’ Museum on Friday last, February 18 2023 bringing with her a very precious cargo. Susan is Ireland’s leading paper conservator/ restorer. She was in Listowel to bring the first tranche of Michael O’Connor’s artwork back to the house where he grew up.
Now in its new incarnation as Kerry Writers’ Museum it will be the repository of his exceptional bank of illustrations/ illuminations.
Michael O’Connor, Evening Herald 1966
Here is my story in a nutshell. One Saturday in 2020 I had a phonecall from a man who introduced himself as Stephen Rynne. Stephen was sorting through his late father, Etienne Rynne’s, papers when he came upon a folder of correspondence and artwork. Stephen recognised that the artwork was of an exceptional quality. It was by Michael O’Connor, an artist whose name he had never heard. A quick Google of Michael O’Connor brought Stephen to Listowel Connection and there I entered the story.
Fr. Brendan O’Connor, Mary Cogan, David Brown and Stephen Rynne, Sept. 2021
Michael O’Connor grew up in No. 24 The Square.
The artist’s father was Dr. Michael O’Connor, a Listowel g.p., a religious man and a republican.
Michael O’Connor’s parents in their garden in 1950 Photo thanks to Eitan Elazar
Dr. O’Connor was one of the local republicans who were interned in Ballykinlar in 1921. While in jail the Kerry men sent back newsletters to their families at home. These newsletters were embellished with Celtic borders, the work of Micheal Reidy of Killarney.
List off internees in Ballykinlar 1921
This was young Michael O’Connor’s first brush with celtic art. Of course, growing up in Listowel he was surrounded by the stucco work of Pat MAuliffe which is replete with symbols of celtic Ireland.
Stephen realised that Michael OConnor was a prolific artist. The more he delved into O’Connor’s corpus of artwork the more he realised that O’Connor was the top Celtic illuminator of his age producing work comparable to the work of the monks who produced The Book of Kells.
Eamon de Valera Forest artwork by Michael O’Connor
Why had no one in the art world ever heard of this genius?
Stephen found that much of O’Connor’s work was done for family and friends. He was happy to stay below the radar.
Papal blessing of the marriage of Etienne and Aideen Rynne, artwork a present to his friends from Michael O’Connor
His biggest commissions were for the Jewish Irish community and official gifts presented to visiting dignitaries. These gifts are now lying in archives around the world.
O’Connor was generous with his talents, particularly to his Listowel friends.
He was a humble man. When asked for a short bio. to put in this booklet whose cover he illustrated for Listowel Emmets in 1960, his response was that he was a Listowel man and that is all people needed to know.
These are the words of his son, Fr. Brendan
We were so accustomed to his artistic creations that we didn’t fully appreciate the originality, skill and dedication he brought to his art. He had the humility to continue working at a very high level of achievement without seeking to be known or appreciated. The completed work was its own reward.
This is shown in particular in the “Breastplate of St Patrick” – a family heirloom which he produced for his own enjoyment in 1961 to celebrate 1,500th anniversary of the national saint.
St. Patrick’s Breastplate now conserved and restored and returned to Kerry Writers’ Museum
The O’Connor family have very kindly donated this family treasure and other artworks to O’Connor’s ancestral home in Listowel.
Stephen Rynne took on a painstaking mission to search out and find as much of O’Connor’s artwork as he could. His search put him in touch with archives around the world. During the 1950s and 60s Michael O’Connor’s work was the presentation gift of choice to visiting dignatories. Examples of his work are in The Vatican, the JFK library, Liverpool cathedral, archive of an Egyptian emperor as well as in The Brazen Head pub in Dublin, TCD, UCD and other Irish locations.
Listowel was always close to Michael O’Connor’s heart. He joined with Bryan MacMahon in producing many Christmas cards and bookmarks.
His most outstanding collaboration and probably one of his best pieces is a collaboration with the Listowel writer in a magnificent presentation piece to Listowel Race Company. The lyrical words by Bryan MacMahon and illumination by Michael O’Connor make this a Listowel treasure.
On the left of the picture is Thomas O’Connell, chairman of the Race Committee with Michael Kennelly, Michael O’Connor, Dan Moloney T.D. and Dr. Bryan MacMahon on the occasion of the handover of the work to the race committee during race week 1958.
The Stokes family, descendants of Thomas O’Connell who have kept this important piece safely until a home was found for it, handed over the picture to Jimmy Deenihan, representing Kerry Writers’ Museum during Listowel Races 2022.
Pictured at the handover of the piece to Kerry Writers’ Museum on Friday September 23 2022 are Olive and Oonagh Stokes with Owen MacMahon and Jimmy Deenihan.
The O’Connor family, Listowel Race Company and others have very generously agreed to donate family heirlooms, and irreplaceable priceless treasures to Kerry Writers Museum.
The museum has secured some of the funding to mount this important exhibition.
Special airtight display cabinets have been installed. Susan Corr, conservator’s, services have been engaged.
Cara Trant and Susan on Friday February 18 2023 at the handover of the first batch of restored illumination.
Beautifully restored and mounted letter
Celtic detail and beautiful calligraphy on the magnificent breastplate piece.
Conservation work is a very specialised job involving matching colours, repairing of vellum with isinglass which is also a collagen and restoring old pictures to their original vibrant state.
The process is slow but the work has started and hopefully we will all get to see the first of these treasures before the end of 2023.
I am privileged to be a witness to this, by far the best story so far to come my way since I started blogging in August 2011.
Thank you, Stephen Rynne.
Thank you too, David O’Sullivan for all the invaluable research
Kayaking in Ballybunion at sunset. Photo: David Morrison
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Beautiful Illuminated Picture
Michael O’Connor and Bryan MacMahon celebrated 100 years of Listowel Races in a beautiful work which was handed over to Kerry Writers’ Museum during Listowel Races 2022.
The piece has now begun the next stage of its journey. Stephen Rynne collected it from the museum and it is now on its way to a paper conservator who will do whatever preservation work is necessary before the museum prepares it for display.
Stephen took these photographs to give us an idea of how stunningly beautiful this is. Combining the work of two of Listowel’s greatest artists, I venture to say that it is Listowel’s and maybe even the Ireland’s greatest modern treasure.
These photographs were taken with a mobile phone through glass. They only give us a small inkling of how magnificent this piece is.
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Ladies’ Day, Listowel Races 2022
Here are some photos I took on the Island on Friday September 23 2022
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A Winter Poem
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Schoolgirls
The class reunion of the Pres. girls from the 1960s saw some old photos on display.
My friend, Margo Anglim took this in a fjord in Norway
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Unveiling a plaque to Remember the Lartique
Sean Moriarty and Denis O’Mahoney of The Lartigue Theatre Company admire the photo and plaque to commemorate Danny Hannon and Ireland’s smallest theatre in Kerry Writers’ Museum, close to the site where it all began 50 years ago.
This is a section of the audience who gathered to remember Danny and the great days of theatre in Listowel.
The Lartigue wasn’t just a theatre or even a group of players, the Lartigue was a family. Like other families the Lartigue holidayed together, travelled abroad together and chipped in together in whatever escapade Danny planned for them.
Danny and his volunteers literally built the theatre, painted it and manned it for 10 years.
Denis and Seán told us the history of the theatre company in entertaining and graphic detail. Neither man had a script they could share with me but I’m still hopeful they will put the history on paper for us.
faces in the crowd at the launch
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The Plaza Cinema
Norma O’Connor, whose parents ran the cinema in The Plaza for years sent us some lovely old cinema posters.
The Plaza was built by Trevor Chute and he hired people to run it as a cinema. Norma’s mother started working in The Plaza in 1938. Norma’s father, who was an electrician, came to work there as a projectionist. He was still working there when he passed away suddenly in 1963. He actually died sitting in his car outside the cinema at the age of only 42.
Norma has had the posters folded up for years. She did her best to flatten them.
She also sent us the dates when these films were shown in The Plaza. Many of the film star’s names will be familiar to my older readers.
More next week…
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An Uplifting Writers’ Week Story
Seán ÓDuibhir of Athenry and Bernie Carmody
One day during Writers’ Week, as I was going from one venue to another I happened upon an artist setting up his easel outside the hotel. I stopped to chat to him. He told me that he was Seán ÓDuibhir from Galway. He came to Listowel to met up with his sister who was here from the U.K. for Writers’ Week. I told him that I’d put him in my blog. He reached into his bag and he gave me a print of a picture he had done the day before.
Part of this shop’s history is told in pictures by Maura McAuliffe on Facebook.
“Dan Flavin’s burnt to the ground by the Black and Tans. Dan Flavin was put in jail. They would have shot him only he had an American passport as he was born in New York and brought back as a child to Ireland.”
Martin Moore shared these receipts and this caption.
3 receipts from the 1920s, one is for a contribution to the North Kerry Republican Soldiers Committee, and another is for 200 copies of Irish Independent and is marked as the first received in nearly two months (due to the Civil War).
Dan Flavin
Micheál Flavin
Joan Flavin
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New Exhibition in Kerry Writers’ Museum
At the launch of Lifting the Curtain, an installation celebrating amateur drama in Kerry, our own Lartigue Theatre presented a compilation of extracts from Sive.
Billy Keane (standing behind Cara Trant) watches the enactment of extracts from his father’s play.
Liz Dunn of Writers’ Week is in the foreground.
Dr. Fiona Brennan, an amateur drama scholar, presented a brief synopsis of the history of drama in Kerry.
