Looking at the overlooked; signatures, surface and symbol
Ruth Jordan
Subject: Painting
10,000 words
This is a discussion of the various typologies of signatures in paintings with examples from 16th and 17th century Italian, Spanish and German art to illustrate predominant themes and interests of the artists in this period. It argues that signatures are a point of interpretation which is frequently overlooked.
Threatening Temptation, Thrilling Titillation: Eve and the Female Serpent as a Insight into Male Attitudes Towards “Lesbian-Like’ Behaviour in Europe, 1410-1510
Tara Joshi
Subject: Painting, Drawing and Manuscripts
10,000 words
This dissertation examines the attitudes towards lesbian-like activity in fifteenth century Europe specifically via a survey of European images of Eve and a female serpent between the dates 1410-1510 ( a hundred year span chosen for its particularly interesting images in this regard). This work represents an enquiry into a facet of Renaissance sexuality. Iconography in art of the figures of Eve and Lilith as the original women or the original lesbians will be discussed. Temptation, titillation and the female serpent in such images will also be addressed. Biblical texts such as the Book of Genesis and the letters of St Paul will be examined to see how these works influenced the meaning and depiction of these images.
Bray Town Hall and Market House
Maureen Joyce
Subject: Architecture
10,000 words
Bray Town Hall is a mock-Tudor style house from the 1880’s surrounded by modern urban buildings. This is a detailed study of the house and its history.
Yours or Mine: Legal Restitutions of Nazi Looted Artworks in the United States and France
Virginia Juillard
Subject: Painting
10,000 words
This dissertation is a discussion on legal restitution of Nazi looted artworks. Existing legal papers briefly mention the different ways in which legal systems resolve cases in the restitution of looted artworks. None delved further into the matter and compared systems through court cases and affairs. This thesis focuses on the diverging ways the United States common law system and the French civil law validate title and the issues surrounding the debate on restitution.
Virgin, Mother, Soldier An Evaluation of the Depiction of Women in the Northern Irish murals
Muireann Kane
Subject: Painting, Murals, Mixed Media
10,000 words
This thesis will examine the depiction of women in the Northern Irish murals. Looking to Loyalist and Republican mural, it will provide an indepth evaluation of the treatment of the female figure from both perspectives. As well as reviewing the effectiveness of State intervention on the murals. It will explore the various interpretations of Mother Ireland, the personification of Ireland as a mother, by both muralists and contemporary Irish artists, Michael Farrell, Martin Forker and Rita Duffy.
Dublin : The Churches of St. Werburgh and St. Ann
Lesley Kavanagh
Subject: Architecture
10,000 words
“The two early 18th century churches of St. Werburgh’s and St. Ann were built within five years of eachother as part of Archbishop King’s reconstruction programme for the Protestant Church.” The churches are studied in detail. Chapter three is devoted to a discussion of the rebuilding of St. Werburgh’s, in the early 18th century. Chapter four deals with the subject of St. Ann’s and the building of a church for a new parish.
Man of the House: Masculinity and Modernity in Gustave Caillebotte's Interiors
Louise Margot Kavanagh
Subject: Painting
10,000 words
Gustave Caillebotte's representations of men in the domestic interior, a realm historically associated with women, convey an introspective view into the private lives and inner worlds of urban, upper middle class men in late nineteenth century France.
Painting the Palaces
Ciara Kay
Subject: Painting
10,000 words
To understand the Minoan approach to wall painting, it is necessary to first accept the lack of division in arts crafts in the Bronze Age. During this period, and especially in this civilisation, much of the material culture was treated as a suitable canvas for decoration. While the precise methods of painting a cup to be fired and composing a wall painting on wet plaster may differ, a dialogue can still be seen between the symbols and motifs which appear on each, The artists who decorated the sites studied in this paper had a clear sensitivity to the images they saw on ceramics and precious objects, incorporating them into their compositions.
Olafur Eliasson and the Land Artists: Eliasson as a continuation of land art in the twenty-first century
Annabel Kealy
Subject: Sculpture, Installation
10,000 words
Fashion and the Modern Art Movement in Paris 1900-1930: A Meeting of Minds
Louise Keane
Subject: Fashion
10,000 words
“Fashion and fine art have always been inextricably linked. Painting and sculpture serve as a valuable visual history of costume. However in the period between 1900 and 1930 in Paris a relationship sprang up between fashion and art of a complicated yet fascinating web of influences and counter-influences.” The concern of this work is to examine the explosion of ideas which circulated between these two areas of expression.
An Investigation into the Controversy Surrounding the Exhibition of Mick O’Dea’s Portrait of Brian Meehan in the 2003 Annual Exhibition at the RHA
Rosie Keane
Subject: Painting
10,000 words
In 2003, Mick O’Dea chose to exhibit his portrait of Brian Meehan, the convicted murderer of Irish journalist, Veronica Guerin. This dissertation aims to reveal some of the less aired aspects behind the relentless fog of publicity which has thwarted a fair assessment of this controversial portrait which was included in the RHA’s 173rd Annual Exhibition. The first chapter deals with the social context of the Brian Meehan portrait and how the display context completely overwhelmed the creative context. The second chapter examines what the controversy says about the public perception and expectation of portraiture. The third chapter deals with the idea of ‘shock’ in the arts, questioning whether the Meehan portrait was deliberately intended to shock, and commenting on the frequent comparisons made between O’Dea’s work and Marcus Harvey’s portrait of Myra Hindley from the 1997 Sensation exhibition.
The Private Houses of Robin Walker
Alexander Kearney
Subject: Architecture
10,000 words
This study examines the private houses of the architect Robin Walker from 1958 until 1982, with a view to elucidating the essential themes of the designs. During this period four significant domestic commissions were realised, whilst many important unexecuted designs exist on paper and on microfilm. The relation of Walker’s themes to those of Mies Van der Rohe is analysed and the question of the influence of LeCorbusier is addressed. Practical aspects of the work, including fittings, are analysed.
Dublin's Terracotta 1882-1903
Susan Keating
Subject: Architecture
10,000 words
This dissertation investigates whether the architectural uses of terracotta in Ireland followed its uses in Britain, or whether its use here differed sigificantly. The geological make-up of Ireland is examined in relation to the production of terracotta. The feasibility of a native terracotta industry in Ireland given the tough European competition is then analysed. This analysis is succeeded by a detailed examination of the uses of architectural terracotta in Dublin between 1882 and 1903.
Displaying Fashion as Art
Charlotte Keegan
Subject: Fashion
10,000 words
In this dissertation I will examine fashion as an art form and how it is displayed in the museum or gallery space. I will do this by looking at various exhibitions as examples, as well as exploring the more modern forms of displaying fashion such as the fashion concept store. I have also researched when and why fashion began to be considered an art form worthy of display and discussed the figures who were significant in making this change. In my final chapter, I focus on the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and its Costume Institute with a special focus on the 2019 ‘Camp, Notes on Fashion’ exhibition.
The Long Gallery of Castletown House. Its decoration and history, with notes on the furnishings and sculpture
Ann Margaret Keller
Subject: Architecture, sculpture, furniture and applied arts
10,000 words
This dissertation discusses the Long Gallery in Castletown House, Co. Kildare. Chapter one provides a description and history, with notes on the furnishings and sculpture. Chapter two considers iconography and sources for the decoration, chapter three looks at the masters of the Gallery and the problem of attribution.
Medieval Church Towers within the Pale
Elizabeth Kelly
Subject: Architecture
10,000 words
This dissertation examines medieval church towers in the area known as the Pale. The author examines the design of the towers and as a result proposes what their typical features were. The function of the towers, besides being belfries, is discussed and possible sources of influence are also examined. The author's conclusions come after visiting all the towers and plans and photographs of all the eleven towers are provided. After an introductory chapter giving a detailed description and history of each tower, the author examines the typical features of the towers and then analyses church tower architecture in Somerset, discussing the question of similarities between the towers there and those in the Pale.
The Vengeful Woman: The Development of Images of Medea in Painting and Drawing of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries
Niamh Kelly
Subject: Painting, Drawig
10,000 words
W. A. Scott in the Diocese of Clonfert
Catherine Kelly
Subject: Architecture
10,000 words
Investigating three projects intended for the Diocese of Clonfert by William A. Scott, this thesis examines an overlooked area of the architect's career. The study comprises an analysis of the now demolished St. Brendan's National School in Loughrea and two unexecuted proposals for Ballinasloe College (1907). Through this analysis of the Clonfert work, the author reveals an architect engaged with the spirit of the Celtic revival, but with considered modern influences.
The Architecture of Public Space in Renaissance Venice and How that Architecture Aids to Public Festivals
Alice Kelly
Subject: Architecture
10,000 words
This dissertation will show the link between the architecture of public space and the festival of Carnival in Renaissance Venice.
Stasis & Movement: An Exploration of Kirchner's Dance Images
Jacki Kelly
Subject: Painting
10,000 words
Expressionist artist Ernst Ludwig Kirchner executed over two hundred images of the dance between 1909 and 1936. It is the function of this study to trace the development of these images throughout the artist's career. Kirchner's self-appointed role as an interpreter of modern life is investigated through the artist's images and writings on the subject of dance. In the light of this investigation, Kirchner's broader claims for his artistic project are reassessed.
The Importance of St. Paul and St. Anthony on the Irish High cross
Heather Kelly
Subject: Sculpture and High Cross
10,000 words
This dissertation aims to assess the place of SS Paul and Anthony on the High Cross, as seen through the two events which have been depicted : the Breaking of Bread by these saints; and the Temptation of St. Anthony. An introduction to their lives and a study of the growth of monasticism in Ireland is provided as a context for the discussion. Chapter two looks at the origin of the iconography of the scenes, interpretations and location on the cross, in relation to other panels.
Little between Life and Work: Niki de Saint-Phalle and Tracey Emin A study of the relationship between art and the function of the literary diary
Carolyn Kelly
Subject: Digital media and Sculpture
10,000 words
This dissertation examines the history of the diary as a literary genre and how it can be related to art, particularly in the work of Niki de Saint Phalle and Tracey Emin. The diary has served throughout the last four centuries as a both a public document (written by prominent men in high society). It documents a social era as much as the life of the author. It is also as a personal, intimate journal in which the author displaces secret emotions and thoughts to the page. This dissertation argues that the art of these women can be viewed as a form of diary, both in the public and private sense. It focuses on the manner in which the artists use their artwork to tease out difficult issues or emotions in their lives as the author uses the private diary, and on the use of diary-like passages of text in their work.
The Representation of the Male Nude by Female Artists. Developing a New Visual Language
Judy Kelly
Subject: Painting, Sculpture and Slide Installation
10,000 words
This dissertation “examines the theoretical background to contemporary representations of the male nude by female artists. It considers the reasons for the relatively few exceptional artists working with this form and looks at the problems women artists face when dealing with it aesthetically. The work of two contemporary Irish artists, Pauline Cummins (1949- ) and Patricia Hurl (1943- ) is examined and placed in the context of the movement to develop a new visual language.”
Work, Rest or Play? How function is manifested in Irish Botanic Gardens
Eileen Kelly
Subject: Architecture
10,000 words
This dissertation is a study of the National Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin, the aims behind its foundation and how these aims were reflected in its layout and buildings. All of this is studied in the context of three other Irish Botanic Gardens, the Trinity College Botanic Gardens, Belfast Botanic Gardens and the Botanic Gardens of the Royal Cork Institution. The purpose behind the foundation of each of the four gardens is determined. Then the layout of each of the gardens is examined in relation to their determined function and trends in landscape design of their period. The author examines whether the trends of public improvement that lay behind the establishment of many art galleries in the nineteenth century were also a reason for setting up botanic gardens. The issues of public access and Sunday openings are examined and with each of the Botanic Gardens the design of their glasshouses is analysed.