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121 Daniel O’Neill (1920-1974)
Figure in a Landscape
Oil on board, 36 x 45.5cm (14¼ x 18”)
Signed
Title inscribed on original label verso
Exhibited: RHA annual exhibition 1956, Cat. No 114
Figure in a Landscape
was one of three paintings Daniel showed at the annual RHA exhibition in 1956. The other
works were, Foreign Seaman, and Harvest Landscape. Arland Ussher previewed the show and noted that the both
Figure in a Landscape
and
Harvest Landscape
established O’Neill, once more, ‘as Irelands premier painter’.
1
He referred
to the “Watteau palette” in
Figure in Landscape
and remarked that as well as the suavity of the design and majesty of
the figure, in this work O’Neill had added strong composition to his ‘considerable quiverful of gifts and also in his
only less magical
Harvest Landscape
’.
In his use of surreal forms and unearthly light, O’Neill moulds the Irish landscape into his own personal creation,
particularly in his nocturnes which allowed for the exploitation of dramatic effects as well as being suggestive of, rather
than actual depictions of, specific locations. Once O’Neill was confident that he could invent a landscape to suit his
purposes, he was able to exploit it and found that it could become a backdrop to display his figures. Ussher observes,
‘He contrasts the dynamic aridity of place with the richly dramatic sky to expose the needs of the heart, searching
always for a solace more desirable than can be conveyed by the inanimate’.
2
Brian Fallon remarked of Daniel O’Neill, ‘he is an excellent Landscapist. But in the Yeatsian way - there is more
imagination than topography’
3
and concluded that O’Neill’s best works ‘are charged with that mysterious and un-
quantifiable quality which gives Art its purpose,’ while quoting the American Critic, Hilton Kramer, who described
the attempt to define the indefinable as ‘aesthetic intelligence’
John Hewitt, writing on the subject of O’Neill’s impasto techniques, noted ‘the work has both a sensory as well as a
sensual quality’.
4
Commenting further he remarked, ‘through his poetry, he handles the great commonplace of being;
birth, death, love, belief, wonder’. Hewett perceptively realises the elusiveness and the dangers that are present in work
so personal, in its communication. Figure in a Landscape is a very poetic work, full of suggestion and mystery.The ru-
ined tower and distant bridge invite the viewer to wonder, while the Rembrantesque robed figure is equally enigmatic,
as he surveys the scene from the shelter of the trees.
O’Neill remained firmly wedded to Figuration throughout his career although many of his works such as
Figure in
a Landscape,
can be broken down into its abstract qualities as there is so much incident contained in the various ele-
ments. Mike Catto declared that ‘the remarkable resonance of his colours whether in his moody or bright paintings
are evidence of an original talent’.
Ten years previously in 1946, Dr.Theodore Goodman perceptively noted O’Neill’s rare ability to reveal through paint-
ing that lyrical romantic quality which exposes the subtle and sensitive nature of a man who is expressing his own
philosophy of life in his work. As is evident in the 1956
Figure in a Landscape
, O’Neill maintained this integrity and
continued to expand, develop and deepen these qualities in his oeuvre.
Anne-Marie Keaveney BA Fine Art (Painting) MLitt Visual Culture.
1
Ussher, A., ‘Art in Ireland’ Irish Tatler and Sketch, March 1956, p25
2
The Irish Press, March 15, 1953
3
Fallon, B., Fortnight, No.307, p.2
4
Hewitt, J., Introductory essay, C.E.M.A Catalogue, 1952
€4,000 - 6,000