Christian Dupont considers the doodles on the cover of a notebook Flann O’Brien kept as secretary for the 1943 Cavan orphanage fire tribunal
Just doodling? Ask Sam. Beckett often sketched odd little figures in his writing notebooks. In our manuscript for his short story ‘Suite’, Beckett filled several blank pages opposite the text with ant-like creatures. Out of context, one might think they were illustrations for The Insect Play by the Brothers Capek, or its adaptation by Flann O’Brien. Only the latter was a flop when the Gaiety Theatre staged it in 1943 and Flann was not a doodler – except on one notable occasion and notebook.
Brian McAvera wonders whether soulless consumerism is the message in Ian Cumberland’s dramatically installed artworks recently shown at Golden Thread Gallery in Belfast
Anita Groener’s strength lies in a total focus on her theme and her art, an art that draws in and challenges the viewer, writes Judith Hill
‘I’m trying to make the invisible visible’ Pat Harris tells Brian McAvera on the eve of his exhibition at the Taylor Galleries, Dublin