ADAM'S IMPORTANT IRISH ART 24th September 2025

38 18 JACK BUTLER YEATS RHA (1871 – 1957) The Metropolitan Regatta, Dublin (1914) Pen and Indian ink 16.5 x 23.5cm (6 ½ x 9 ¼ “) Signed and inscribed with title Provenance: With The Dawson Gallery, Dublin; Mrs Jobling-Purser; Private Collection, Dublin Literature: ‘A Broadside ’, No. 10, sixth year (March 1914) (Dublin, Cuala Press, 1914) repro.; Hilary Pyle, ‘The Different World of Jack B. Yeats, His Cartoons and Illustrations , (Dublin, Irish Academic Press, 1994) no.1953, p.269 € 8,000 - 12,000 In 1913, Jack B. Yeats attended the Metropolitan Regatta in Dublin, where, sketchbook in hand, he captured the dra- ma and exhilaration of the rowing races at Ringsend. In the present drawing, two sculls skim across the restless waters of the River Liffey, driven forward by the urgent cries of their coxes and the fierce determination of their rowers. The surface of the river, rendered in deft, tightly worked lines of Indian ink, conveys both motion and immediacy, hallmarks of Yeats’ draughtsmanship. Along the crowded quay wall, spectators wave their hats and cheer, while rid- ers on horseback gallop frenetically to keep pace with the racing boats. Conceived with the compositional rhythm of a frieze, the scene unfolds in layered registers—dark waters below, sculls in competition, and above them, the animat- ed spectacle of quay, crowd, horses, and clouded sky. Yeats’ lifelong engagement with maritime subjects finds poignant expression here. Having grown up in and around the quays of Sligo, he returned repeatedly to the world of sailors, ships, and waterfront life throughout his career. While many of his works evoke Sligo’s harbours, he also turned his attention to Dublin’s riverfront, most memora- bly in The Liffey Swim . His drawing Dublin Quays was re- produced by the Cuala Press, appearing as both a Christ- mas card and in the Press’s 1911 calendar, underscoring the enduring resonance of these urban river scenes within his oeuvre.