Helen Sophia O'Hara

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Helen Sophia O'Hara
Photo of Helen Sophia O'Hara.jpg
Born1846
Portstewart, County Londonderry, Ireland
Died1920 (aged 73/74)
County Waterford, Ireland
NationalityIrish
Known forbotanical and landscape painting

Helen Sophia O'Hara (1846 - 1920) was an Irish watercolour artist.[1]

Life[]

Helen Sophia O'Hara was born in The Castle Portstewart, County Londonderry, in 1846. She was the daughter of the Reverend James D. O'Hara. Her brother, H.S. O'Hara was the Bishop of Cashel and Emly, and Lismore, County Waterford.[1] She lived with her friend and fellow artist Fanny Currey at the Mall, Lismore, from 1898 until 1919. It is believed that O'Hara received no formal training and was self-taught.[2] She died in Waterford in 1920.[1]

Artistic work[]

Dancing Children by O'Hara

O'Hara was a watercolour painter, whose work centred on landscapes and seascapes, as well as flower painting. She exhibited with the Royal Hibernian Academy from 1881 to 1894. She was a member of the Belfast Art Society (BAS), and although she retired in 1895, she was elected vice-president in 1896. Whilst living in Lismore with Currey, O'Hara illustrated a number of Currey's children's books. Her work was exhibited with the Society of Women Artists, the Dudley Gallery, and the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours.[1] She exhibited over 100 artworks, landscapes and seascapes, with the Water Colour Society of Ireland from 1892 to 1913.[2] O'Hara was elected an honorary member of the BAS in 1904 along with Mildred Anne Butler, John Lavery, and Frank Spenlove-Spenlove. The Ulster Museum holds a number of her works.[3]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d Butler, Patricia (2000). Irish Botanical Illustrators & Flower Painters. Suffolk: Antique Collectors' Club. p. 74. ISBN 9781851493579.
  2. ^ a b MacNally, Niamh. "A Subtle Art" (PDF). Irish Arts Review. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 July 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
  3. ^ Butler, Patricia A. (1997). Three Hundred Years of Irish Watercolours and Drawings. London: Phoenix Illustrated. p. 157. ISBN 0753802066.
Retrieved from ""