Artist Paul Henry started his career wanting to capture the spirit of Ireland through his various landscape paintings.He decided to make art his full-time career after moving to attend the Belfast School of Art. He studied under Jean-Paul Laurens, spending a short time in Paris before traveling to London where met and married his wife Grace. The pair moved back to Paris for two years where he continued to hone his craft.
Paul Henry's prints include charcoal sketches, a medium he developed during his time in Paris. Paul Henry's paintings depicting the crystal blue lakes and rolling hillsides of West Ireland are among his most collectible. Artist Paul Henry has been noted as one of Ireland's best-known artists of the 20th century. Many of his and other artists fantastic landscape paintings for sale can be found online.
Professional, fast, and affordable in house shipping available for all items. For higher resolution images please visit bid.craftedauctions.com Paul Henry (Irish, 1877-1958) "In The West Of Ireland" Print & Haynes Yellow Stone Park Photograph Excellent condition. Age related wear. Largest is 9 3/4" tall and 11 3/4" wide.
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) A Village in the West of Ireland (1941) Oil on canvas, 37.5 x 45.5cm (14¾ x 18'') Signed, also signed and inscribed with title verso Provenance: Artist's studio till 1957; deVere's, Dublin, June 1997; Private Collection, Dublin; Sale, these rooms, Important Irish Art Sale, 21/03/2010, lot 105. Exhibited: Dublin, 1941(7); Dublin, 1952(14); Bray, 1956(13); Dublin and Belfast, 1957(12) and Shannon, 1957(12) Literature: Kennedy, S.B. Paul Henry, Yale 2007, p.302 Dr. S.B Kennedy writes that this painting was almost certainly painted in the spring of 1941 when Paul Henry stayed for a time in Co. Kerry. Numbered 1020 in Dr. Kennedy's then ongoing Catalogue Raisonne (2010) Almost certainly painted in the spring of 1941 when Paul Henry stayed for a time in Co. Kerry, this work depicts a grouping of thatched cottages nestled within the landscape. Green and dark blue hills rise in the background beneath a quintessential Henry sky. In the work he utilises a tighter composition, positioning the cottages at the edge of the picture frame, some slightly cut off from view. It immediately creates a sense of viewing a small village, a community of people living, albeit in a remote landscape, but within walking distance of their neighbours. This work is less focused on the open expansive environment as seen in his larger lake and mountain scenes and instead honing in on the more detailed depiction of the landscape. In the mid-foreground of the composition sits a small pool of water reflecting the cloud formations above. In this work the handling of the paint is looser, more expressionistic in character. He draws our attention to the texture of the stone walls, outlined in strong black lines while for the grasses and thatching the paint is applied thinly in areas allowing the weft of the linen canvas to show through. He balances the volumes of the cottages against the rising undulation of hills and mountains beyond, ensuring that the cottages to not feel dwarfed by the natural landscape but rather in communion with it. Henry painted this work aged in his mid-sixties, after many years on the road travelling and in a radio broadcast that he made for the BBC in January of that year titled ‘Painting in Ireland’, he remarked on the challenges of working as a landscape painter, ‘skirting a village or a lake…climbing stone walls and fences and ditches’ but also of the immense value of the experience ‘In all these things there is a wealth of interest… and somehow or another it gets into your work if you are really trying you to get the spirit of the place you are painting’ (Quoted in S.B Kennedy, Paul Henry, Yale 2007 p.80) Niamh Corcoran, April 2026
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) A BOG BY THE SEA, circa 1915-17 oil on panel signed lower right; inscribed with title and original price (£8-8) on reverse h:13 w:16 in. Provenance: Magee Gallery, Belfast; Whence purchased circa 1930 by Dr Robert Gilmour; Thence to his sister, Milly Finlay MacKenzie, of Lochboisdale, Isle of South Uist, Scotland; By whom given to the father of the later owner, circa 1960; Whyte's, 17 September 2007, lot 81; Private collection Exhibited: Possibly exhibited as The Bog by the Sea, ‘Paintings by Paul Henry’, Hackett Gallery, New York, 10-22 March 1930, catalogue no. 6; ‘Paintings of Ireland by Irish Artists’, Grace Horne’s Gallery, Boston, 31 March to 18 April 1930, catalogue no. 4; ’Four Irish Artists: J. Humbert Craig, Paul Henry, E. L. Lawrenson, J. Crampton Walker’, Fine Art Society, London, November 1930, catalogue no. 53 Literature: S.B. Kennedy, 'Paul Henry: with a catalogue of the Paintings Drawings Illustrations', Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2007, catalogue no. 428, illustrated p.186 Kennedy writes: Probably a scene on Blacksod Bay, immediately to the north of Achill Island, the composition being almost identical to another picture of that title. In early 1917, while still living on Achill, Henry worked for a time as a paymaster for the Congested Districts Board. In his autobiography (Henry 1951, p. 84) he says that the job was 'a godsend', not that it brought in anything worth talking about, but it carried with it a travel allowance, which, he said, 'more than repaid me because I was able to go farther afield.' Moreover, he continued, 'I was able to sit down whenever I wanted to and make drawings on the way, going down side roads, taking any opportunities to get off the beaten track'. It was almost certainly on one such trip that he made this composition. The heavy clouds, solid film of paint and form of the signature suggest a date of execution of 1915-17.
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) THE LOCH OF THE TEARS OF THE SORROWING WOMEN, 1916-17 oil on canvas signed lower left h:20 w:24 in. Provenance: Adam's & Bonham's, 31 May 2000, lot 93; Private collection; Adam's, 29 March 2006, lot 19; Private collection Literature: S.B. Kennedy, 'Paul Henry: with a catalogue of the Paintings Drawings Illustrations', Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2007, catalogue no. 443, illustrated p.190 Kennedy writes: In about 1916 or 1917 Henry began to shift his interest away from the people of Achill towards the landscape itself. In the process the influence of Whistler, which had lately been dormant, surfaced again and for the next six or eight years is discernible, and at times dominant, in his landscapes. The Loch of the Tears of the Sorrowing Women is one of the first compositions to typify this change in emphasis. There is here a softness to the landscape, with its heavy, atmospheric mist and dankness and the muted tones and limited palette are clearly Whistlerian. Throughout, the paint has been applied evenly and there is little impasto. Although little attempt has been made to define forms, the structure of the landscape, as well as its mood, have been set down with a deep understanding and assurance. Almost certainly a scene of Keel Lake, the title of this picture was suggested by Johnny Tom Owen MacNamara with whom Henry formed a friendship shortly after he settled on Achill. He occasionally asked MacNamara to suggest titles for his pictures and those titles he came up with, including this one, he said, 'were all actual Irish names, and his translation was not only adequate but highly poetical' (Henry 1951, p. 93).
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) DAPPING ON LOUGH MASK, COUNTY MAYO, 1928-36 oil on canvas signed lower right h:16 w:20 in. Provenance: Christie's, 4 March 1988, lot 155 as Lough Corrib; with Pyms Gallery, London; Private collection, Belfast; whence purchased by the present owner Literature: Henry, Paul, An Irish Portrait, Batsford, London, 1951, p. 69 (illustrated); Deane Paul, Paul Henry on Achill Island: Paintings and Drawings, Éire Ireland, Spring 1989, p. 59; Mallie, Eamon, One Hundred Years of Irish Art, Nicholson & Bass Ltd., Belfast, 2000, p.165; Kennedy, Dr S.B., Paul Henry: Paintings, Drawings and Illustrations, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2007, p. 243, catalogue no. 708 (illustrated) In his 2007 catalogue raisonne of Paul Henry's oeuvre, the late Dr SB Kennedy recorded Dapping on Lough Mask, Co. Mayo as catalogue number 708 and its provenance as "whereabouts unknown"[1]. It was recorded earlier by way of a colour plate in Paul Henry's autobiography, An Irish Portrait, first published in 1951, one of only twelve illustrations selected for inclusion; eight of which were oil paintings. Decades later, Paul Deane's article, Paul Henry on Achill Island: Paintings and Drawings published in Éire - Ireland: A Journal of Irish Studies (Volume 24, Issue 1, Spring 1989) also included an illustration of this painting. A vast natural limestone lake, Lough Mask stretches between counties Galway and Mayo, spanning 20,500 acres, and is celebrated for the clarity of its waters and the quality of wild fish it yields; trout in particular. The lake shoreline is varied, with sheltered coves and quieter bays on the northern and eastern shores and exposed limestone shelves to the west.[2] Dapping, a specialised fishing technique using a long rod to 'dance' a dry fly on the surface of the water, is associated with the months of August and September on Lough Mask, when traditionally live grasshoppers would have been used. Some of the most substantial catches of the season are taken in this late window, with reports of specimens over 4lb recorded.[3] Paul Henry's move to Achill in 1910 was inspired by the writings of John Millington Synge and William Butler Yeats, but other significant texts referenced in his autobiography were equally influential. Newry born W.H. Maxwell's Wild Sports of the West. With Legendary Tales, and Local Sketches (1832) - a compilation of his letters recounting hunting, fishing and poaching in County Mayo is cited, as well as the writings of American naturalist Henry David Thoreau. A transcendentalist, Thoreau was best known for his book, Walden (1854), a text described as, "...part personal declaration of independence, social experiment, voyage of spiritual discovery, satire, and - to some degree - a manual for self-reliance."[4] He advocated for simple living in natural surroundings and in many ways Paul Henry's years living in a similarly harsh environment in Ireland produced in paint what Thoreau championed in his writings. In his own words Henry writes, "I cannot help thinking that the seeds of my passion for the wilder and more remote parts of Ireland were sown when I first read Thoreau's Walden very many years before. At any rate here I was living in one of the loneliest parts of Ireland and quite convinced that I was living as near the simple life as it is possible to get." He continues, "My wanderings through Mayo took me into many outlying areas and it is in these places that one finds a richness of life that is not found in the more sophisticated parts of the country."[5] In the present work Paul Henry observes two figures in their boat, one taking charge of the oars, the other the rod. The latter is slightly bent forward, his capped head down in a practised manner, baiting his line perhaps. The waters are calm, ideal for dapping, and the presence of another vessel in the distance suggests conditions are optimal. Two thirds of the composition is dominated by voluminous clouds, for which Henry is renowned, with a rhythmic mountain range to the centre and rippling waters, vegetation and rocks to the lower right foreground. The palette displays the influence of Whistler in its monochromatic harmonies and as SB Kennedy writes of this period, "By now his palette was consistently lighter in tone than it had previously been… [and] is characterised by a pristine clear light and the colours too, although limited in range, are clean and un-muddied."[6] An Irish Portrait was published in 1951 when the artist was 75 years of age. The year previous he was offered presidency of the RHA (he declined) and he continued in this decade - his final - to submit work for exhibition thus keeping his name before the public even as artistic trends were shifting. His autobiography is an important part of his legacy and its glowing foreword by Seán Ó Faoláin was a shrewd choice in this respect. Similarly, Henry we can assume carefully and very deliberately selected the paintings that would best represent his oeuvre for posterity. Dapping on Lough Mask, Co. Mayo is one of the eight oil paintings Henry chose.[7] It is a rare, later example which includes the presence of human activity within the immense natural environment of the west and it exudes a simplicity and timelessness for which the artist has since become associated. Adelle Hughes April 2026 ________________________________________ [1] Kennedy, Dr S.B., Paul Henry: Paintings, Drawings and Illustrations, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2007, p.243 [2] https://fishing.ie/venues/lough-mask [3] Ibid. [4] Gura, Philip F., American Transcendentalism: A History, Hill & Wang, New York, 2007 [5] Henry, Paul, An Irish Portrait, Bath Press, Avon for Batsford, London, 1988, p.85 [6] Kennedy, Dr S.B., Paul Henry, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2000, p.125 [7] Whyte's sold the oil painting which was reproduced on the dustjacket of Henry's autobiography, An Irish Portrait. A Sunny Day, Connemara, 19 October 2020, lot 18, hammer price €420,000
Paul Henry (Irish 1876-1958) River landscape 1916 Oil on canvas Signed and dated From a distinguished Georgian manor house in London Dimensions: (Canvas) 12 in. (H) x 15 in. (W) (Frame) 21 in. (H) x 24 in. (W)
Paul Rand (American, 1914-1996) Harry Jack Gray Center Dedication poster, University of Hartford, April 25, 1989. Signed in graphite lower left and numbered 2 of 120.
Paul Henry (Irish 1876-1958), view of a fishing village, colour print, signed in pencil by the artist, image size 46 x 54cm, framed and glazed, 65 x 74cm overall, with John Magee Gallery label verso.
PAUL HENRY (1876–1958) IRELAND, IRISH AER LINGUS, CONNEMARA LANDSCAPE offset lithographic poster, c.1960, condition A-; not backed 40 x 25in. (102 x 64cm.)
Paul Henry RHA (1877-1958) Reflections (c.1930/5) Oil on canvas board, 30 x 40cm (11¾ x 15¾) Signed Provenance: Sale, these rooms, 30/5/2007, lot 48, where purchased by the present owner The small area of sky and generous foreground evident in this composition is unusual in Paul Henry’s work, although the essential two-part division of the picture plane between these two areas is a familiar device in his art. The lightness in mood of the scene and the freely applied brushwork suggest a date of execution of around 1930-5, a period in the artist’s life when the domestic and other difficulties of the previous decade were well behind him. A similar composition, and with similar handling of paint, to Henry’s Cottages 1930-5, number 762 in S. B. Kennedy’s forthcoming catalogue of Paul Henry’s oeuvre. The title ‘Reflections’ is inscribed on the reverse, but possibly not in the artist’s hand. Numbered 1213 in S. B. Kennedy’s ongoing listing of Paul Henry’s works. S.B. Kennedy (May 2007) What is immediately striking in this composition is Henry’s decision to allow the lake to take centre stage. The water dominates, acting not merely as a foreground element but as a mirror that quietly doubles the world above it. The sky itself is barely visible as a physical presence, just a narrow band above the mountains, yet it lives fully within the painting through its reflection. The cottages themselves, clustered modestly by the water’s edge, anchor the painting in human presence without disturbing its peace. Trails of smoke billow from the chimneys, curling upward into the clear air. This small but vital detail breathes life into the scene. These are not abandoned dwellings or romantic ruins; they are lived-in homes. Somewhere within those white walls, fires are lit, kettles are boiling, and daily life continues at an unhurried pace. Henry’s treatment of the cottages is characteristically restrained. There is no unnecessary detail, no attempt to individualise them beyond their shared form and function. Instead, they stand as symbols of rural Irish life; humble, enduring, and deeply connected to the land. The Connemara mountains behind them rise gently rather than dramatically, their presence solid but unthreatening. They serve as a protective backdrop, enclosing the scene and reinforcing the sense of shelter and belonging. Reflections endures because it captures something timeless about the West of Ireland; its light, its stillness, and its ability to feel both vast and intimate at once. It is a painting that does not demand attention, but gently rewards it; offering, like the lake itself, a calm space in which to pause and reflect.
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) LANDSCAPE, CONNEMARA, 1932-5 oil on canvas signed lower right h:16 w:19.50 in. Provenance: Waddington Gallery, Dublin; Sotheby's, London, 2 June 1995, lot 331 as A Western Lough, Connemara; Private collection; Adam's, 26 September 2007, Dublin, lot 73; Private collection Literature: S. B. Kennedy, Paul Henry: with a Catalogue of the Paintings, Drawings, Illustrations (New Haven & London: Yale University Press, 2007), number 806 This scene almost certainly depicts the Maamturk mountains, viewed from Kylemore Lough in County Galway, with Letterbreckaun, which rises to over 600 metres, dominating the range. It is an area in which Henry often worked during the late 1920s and early 1930s. The composition is similar to the artist's A Western Landscape, of 1927-8 (Kennedy 2007, number 669). Landscape, Connemara is dated 1932-5 on stylistic grounds. Dr S. B. Kennedy By the early 1930s, when the present work was painted, Paul Henry had settled into life in Carrigoona Cottage in Enniskerry County Wicklow with his partner, and later his second wife, the artist Mabel Young RHA (1889-1974) whom he had first met in 1924. The mid-1920s had been fraught with both marital and financial troubles for Henry. His marriage to the artist Grace Henry HRHA (1868-1953) was breaking down - cracks had begun to appear in their relationship as early as 1916 following their time on Achill - and by the mid-1920s the damage had become irreparable. Henry was also somewhat a victim of his own success as demand for his original paintings soared following the mass reproduction of his images in posters for the London Midland and Scottish Railway Company. Kennedy describes how he became, "...trapped in his own imagery... [losing] much of the sparkle of enthusiasm and inventiveness of his earlier period. His compositional technique became stagnant, and he turned against any thought of further development." (1) At this point he was based in Dublin and rarely visited the West of Ireland. Life with Young in Enniskerry however reinvigorated the artist. Kennedy describes, "Henry's palette, like his mood, lightened as his financial and domestic problems faded." (2) By September 1934 he was legally separated and it would appear his thirst for inspiration had returned following a holiday in County Kerry. Kennedy writes how Henry's "...mood and palette brightened noticeably… his paint now fluid and heavily laden with linseed oil… applied with relish and a reinvigorated sense of purpose characterises his work, a development that typifies him till the 1940s…" (3) The present work would certainly seem to reflect a renewed passion in his surroundings. The dramatic movement of the clouds in the upper third of the composition evokes a sense of enthusiasm and joy, calling to mind Sean O'Faolain's words "special drama of mobile light" [in his introduction to Henry's autobiography An Irish Portrait]. This is not a static cumulus cloud looming over the land but a commotion of them whisking across a vibrant blue sky. Here their reflection in the freshwater of Kylemore Lough in the foreground ripples out towards the viewer and the combination of horizontal and vertical movement from above and below create quite the dynamic scene. The middle ground is knitted into the composition through the delicate, upward brushstrokes of the lakeside vegetation that weave from the lower right corner through to the centre of the painting, where a cluster of trees is the focal point. Dark horizontal lines in shades of blue and brown create definition here, while the cluster of rocks in the lower right of the composition - a pictorial device used several times by Henry in works such as Cottages by a Lake, Achill (sold through these rooms as lot 17, 11 March 2024) - provide balance; their colour and form echoing the mountain range in the distance. Adelle Hughes February 2026 Footnotes 1. Kennedy, S.B., Lives of Irish Artists Paul Henry 1876-1958, Town House, Dublin in association with the National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin, 1991, p.30 2. Kennedy, S.B., Paul Henry, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, published on the occasion of an exhibition at the National Gallery of Ireland, 19 February - 18 May 2003, p.116 3. Ibid., p.17
▲ Paul Henry (Irish, 1876-1958) View of the Twelve Pins, Connemara lithograph in colours, signed 'Paul Henry' in pencil l.r., with 'Fine Art Trade Guild' blind stamp l.l. image 34.5 x 39.5cm Condition Report: Framed: 53 x 57cm Slight yellowing and fading. A small dark spot to the sky in the upper left. A little time staining to margins. Not viewed out of glazed frame.
Paul Henry RHA (1877-1958) Coastal Landscape with Galway Hookers Oil on panel, 40 x 60cm (15¾ x 23¾'') Signed Provenance: Collection of John A. Costello (1891-1976), former Taoiseach, thence by descent Paul Henry’s paintings have long come to embody the visual essence of the west of Ireland. With their quietly monumental compositions, subtle tonal range, and masterly handling of light, they capture both the grandeur and simplicity of a landscape that for Henry represented the enduring spirit of Ireland itself. Born in Belfast in 1876, Henry trained initially at the Belfast School of Art before moving to Paris in 1898 to study under Jean-Paul Laurens at the Académie Julian. There, he absorbed the tonal discipline and compositional restraint of French academic painting, while also encountering the work of Whistler, whose influence would remain profound throughout his career. Returning to Ireland in 1910 after a period in London, Henry and his wife, the painter Grace Henry, settled on Achill Island. The island’s rugged coastline, ever-changing skies and unspoiled character provided the ideal subject for his contemplative sensibility. The present work, dating from the 1930s, depicts a serene coastal scene—almost certainly along the Achill shoreline—with two sailboats gliding on a silvered sea beneath a vast canopy of cloud. The low horizon and rhythmic contour of the dark rock outcrop exemplify Henry’s compositional clarity, while his restrained palette of soft greys, creams, and muted browns heightens the sense of calm isolation. The two distant sails serve as quiet punctuation within the elemental expanse, evoking the timeless relationship between man and nature along Ireland’s Atlantic edge. By the time this painting was executed, Henry’s reputation as the foremost interpreter of the Irish landscape was firmly established. His depictions of the west—at once modern in their structural economy and deeply romantic in spirit—had come to define the emerging image of the nation in the early decades of independence. His work appeared on posters for the London Midland and Great Western Railway, bringing an idealised vision of Connemara and Achill to an international audience, and his influence on successive generations of Irish painters was profound. Of particular note is the painting’s distinguished provenance. It is believed to have been purchased directly from the artist by John A. Costello, later twice Taoiseach of Ireland (1948–51 and 1954–57). Costello, a noted connoisseur and supporter of Irish art, is said to have acquired the work during the 1930s, at a time when Henry’s paintings were increasingly sought after by Ireland’s professional and political elite. Retained by Costello and subsequently by his family, the work has never before been offered for sale, remaining a cherished part of a private collection for nearly a century. This rare and beautifully preserved coastal study stands as a quintessential example of Henry’s art at its most contemplative: an image of stillness and light that distils the rugged poetry of the western seaboard into a scene of universal calm and quiet dignity.
Paul Henry, British 1877-1958, Cottages in a mountainous lake landscape; lithograph in colours, after a watercolour, signed in the plate, sheet: 66 x 55.5 cm, (unframed) (ARR)
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) IN CONNEMARA oil on panel signed lower left; inscribed with artist and title on reverse h:14 w:16 in. Provenance: Purchased by either Sir Patrick McGovern of Blacklion, Co. Cavan (1870-1933) or Mary Geraldine Kane, circa 1930-45; Carol and Robert Kane, Oxford, Ohio; Thence by descent to Ned Kane; Caza Sikes, Cincinnati, 8 September 2021, lot 11; Private collection In Connemara is painted on a board by Paul Henry in the open air (en plein air). The skill and confidence with which the artist was able to incorporate his knowledge of classical training and modern techniques is impressive. Three cottages by the sea viewed from above are located in the bottom third of the image. The mountain and sky are in the background. The sun is hidden and the colours are subdued with an overall effect of a scene glimpsed through rain and mist on a windy, overcast day. Working fast in inclement weather the artist has laid out a limited palette. A small board already painted in a neutral colour, is divided up with charcoal into three horizontal bands serving as foreground, middle distance and background. Lines are drawn radiating towards the centre in the middle distance to form geometric shapes. A quick charcoal sketch is done on the spot, placing three cottages and an inlet of the sea with headlands in the foreground, the mountain in the middle distance and the sky in the background. A pathway is drawn winding through the middle of the foreground down to the sea. The background and middle distance are blocked in with a thin coat of cold, grey oil paint. The same grey with a tiny touch of crimson to encourage violet is used for the sea and to reflect the sky. Burnt umber is used to cover the bottom foreground including the cottage roofs, windows, doors and turf stacks. A thicker grey mixture composed of more white paint with a little ivory black and Prussian blue is applied to the mountain in the middle distance in diagonal strokes with the addition of patches of darker blue to suggest gullies and ridges and is used also for the headland at the foot of the mountain. The brush marks are visible due to the paint consistency and the speed of application. Wet paint is applied on wet paint. Thin grey paint is applied over the furthest headland. Burnt umber is added for warmth to bring the nearest two headlands forward and again a paler colour is stroked on top to suggest topographical features. The violet grey is applied to the background to create clouds in brush swirls. White paint highlights some clouds with the wet paint dragged at the edges and is also pulled across part of the water in horizontal lines to suggest waves and foam. The cottage walls are painted white and overlaid with a touch of added ochre. Ochre and white is pulled downwards on the rooftops, fields and haystacks to suggest the straw-like texture, leaving the umber exposed at the edges and gaps. A touch of this warmth is added to white and overlaid on the cottage walls with alternate grey patches for shadows. The grey is used for the path that winds down towards the sea and for walls and rocks around the fields. Variations of umber, yellow ochre, blue and white mixtures are applied in horizontal strokes for different features and textures in the immediate foreground. The freedom and spontaneity that this little sketch demonstrates was learnt by Henry in Paris. The technique derives from the ébauche stage of the academic system of painting that affected the practice of landscape painting in particular and led to the development of Impressionism. Henry’s genius lay in amalgamating his artist’s eye with this training whilst still leaving space for the emotion to dwell in. At the same time he was painting what he saw and what people recognised, a new realism in Irish art. Dr Mary Cosgrove,
Paul Henry 1876-1958 Donegal / Sheephaven. Circa 1926. Condition B+: restoration along repaired tears and abrasions in margins and image and along vertical and horizontal folds; repaired pin holes in corners. Framed. Furness vol. 8, p. 34.
Henry (Paul, 1876-1958). Village by the Lake AR * Henry (Paul, 1876-1958). Village by the Lake, colour photolithograph on wove paper, printed by WJ Stacey London, signed in pencil lower right, Fine Art Trade Guild blindstamp lower left, Mucklows' Gallery label to verso detailing title and artist, mount aperture 36.5 x 41.5 cm (14 1/4 x 16 1/2 ins), framed and glazed (49.5 x 54 cm) QTY: (1)
Henry (Paul, 1876-1958). Evening on Killary Bay AR * Henry (Paul, 1876-1958). Evening on Killary Bay, colour photolithograph on wove paper, printed by WJ Stacey London, signed in pencil lower right, Fine Art Trade Guild blindstamp lower left, Mucklows' Gallery label to verso detailing title and artist, mount aperture 36.5 x 41.5 cm (14 1/4 x 16 1/2 ins), framed and glazed (49.5 x 54 cm) QTY: (1)
Paul Henry R.H.A. (Irish, 1876-1958) The Milk Cart signed 'PAUL HENRY' (lower left) and further signed indistinctly (lower right) oil on canvas laid on panel 38.4 x 55.5 cm. (15 1/8 x 21 7/8 in.) Painted in 1928-9
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) KEEL BAY, ACHILL, c.1910-15 oil on panel signed lower right; with John Magee label on reverse h:11 w:13.75 in. Provenance: John Magee, Belfast, 1961; Private collection Literature: Kennedy, Dr S.B., Paul Henry: Paintings, Drawings and Illustrations, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2007, p.181, possibly as catalogue no. 412 The scene is the village of Keel (An Caol) in Achill County Mayo overlooking the strand known in Gaeilge as Trá Mór, the big beach. Paul Henry and his wife Grace arrived in Achill in 1910 from London and stayed at The Amethyst belonging to the Barrett family in the village of Keel. In his autobiography Henry personifies Achill, referring to houses "huddled close together as if for warmth and companionship". He hears the island speaking to him and fell in love with the village of Keel and its changing moods. He decided to stay in Achill and paint. He wrote that Keel, "never looked the same from one day to another. When it was windless (which was seldom on that wild coast), and the sun shone and the workers were busy in the fields it lay beside the sea, calm and peaceful. It was gay and lively during spring and harvest with people going about their chores. In rain it gave one the impression of a flock of speckled hens huddled together, and during the great gales that swept over it, it cowered, the cottages crouching low among their sally gardens while the wind boomed overhead, and the devouring sea was at the doors snarling among the rocks." (1) This small oil painting on panel is typical of the quick sketches Henry did when he first arrived on the island, attempting to adapt his art training from Belfast and Post Impressionist Paris to capture the changing beauty before him. He works from a height behind the village, quickly dividing the panels with lines sloping to a point off to the right to create the foreground. The horizon line and the slope of the distant Minion Cliffs meet off to the top left to form the background and the line of the crescent of the beach echoes the horizon and the slope of the houses. The bright warm colours of the rye straw thatch and grass are used to bring the foreground forward. White is added to allow the strand to fade behind alongside the cool blue of the Atlantic. Purple pushes the cliffs away, dark against a grey blue sky. White is applied generously to the round clouds, the gable walls and the waves sparkling at the water's edge. Kennedy sees this painting as possibly exhibited in Belfast in 1915 and referred to in The News Letter on 15th March 1915. (2) Paul and Grace exhibited regularly in Belfast from 1911, their fifth exhibition being held in the Carlton Restaurant in Donegal Place. (3) This delightful little painting, one would like to think, provided some joy to viewers during the gloom of the First World War and the strains of the suspended Home Rule issue. Dr Mary Cosgrove 1 Paul Henry "An Irish Portrait" 1951, p.56 2 Kennedy S. B., Paul Henry 2007, p. 181. 3 ibid., p. 42. 3
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) WEST OF IRELAND BOG oil on canvas laid on board signed lower right h:14 w:20 in. Provenance: Collection of Dr Norah Hamilton, Sunderland, probably acquired from The Combridge Gallery, Dublin; Thence by bequest to a friend and colleague; Thence gifted to the previous owners; Whyte's, 2 October 2017, lot 21; Private collection It is impossible to know where this scene is, but it is no doubt in Connemara. There is fairly heavy impasto in many areas throughout, especially in the sky, distant mountains and landscape. This is also true of the foreground turf stacks, which stand out in their darkness. The immediate foreground, with its water-strewn landscape shows Paul Henry's consummate skill with such a scene. West of Ireland Bog is numbered 1321 in S. B. Kennedy's catalogue of Paul Henry's oeuvre. Dr. S.B. Kennedy August 2017 The previous owner was Dr Norah Hamilton (1896-1961), a consultant anaesthetist to Sunderland Area Hospital Group. She was born in Edinburgh of Irish-Scots parentage. The painting was bequeathed to a fellow anaesthetist and friend, who in turn gifted it to his children.
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) COTTAGES, WEST OF IRELAND, c.1920s oil on panel signed lower right h:7.50 w:10 in. Provenance: Private collection, New York; Sold by private treaty, Clarke's, Westchester, 8 May 2009; Private collection In 1912 Paul Henry and his wife, the artist Grace Henry, left England and settled on Achill Island where they spent seven productive years painting the local people and landscape. Paul Henry wrote extensively on his experience of Achill life in his autobiography, An Irish Portrait. On the village of Keel he wrote, "It was the most gregarious of villages, perhaps fifty houses in all, huddled close together as if for warmth and companionship, devoid of all plan... [w]hat seemed like leaf-thatched huts were the thatched roofs of the cottages and the straw-thatched hay stacks of the community. These latter were tethered, tied first of all circularly with straw ropes (sugans), then with heavier ropes crossing the tops diagonally and weighted with large stones. There was no order of any kind. There was no street; you could wander among the houses in any direction...Nearly every cottage had its stone-walled garden or haggard with its tiny grove of sally willows for basket making, and huge stacks of turf were before every door or piled up at the gable ends." (1) Cottages, West of Ireland, c.1920s records in paint Henry's fascination with and appreciation for life on the harsh Atlantic coast. Here he is not distracted by the weather, the cloud formations or the immense natural world which surrounds this community. Here the islanders' lives take centre stage. Henry introduces the viewer with a wide view of an uneven path dotted with rocks and grassy mounds. The haphazard layout is emphasised by the artist's cutoff composition to the left of the painting and through his spontaneous application of paint. To the centre is a straw-thatched haystack, tied and weighted as described, and in the distance white dots for chimneys, gable ends and distant dwellings. Secondary to the scene is the skyscape which is flatly painted with a single cumulus cloud hovering in the distance. Compositionally Cottages, West of Ireland, c.1920s shares similarities with a number of other examples from this period including Claddagh Village, 1928 (Kennedy, catalogue no. 674) and A Western Village (no. 675) dated to the same year. Kennedy notes examples of similar compositions also recorded in Henry's sketchbooks now in the Collection of the National Gallery of Ireland. Adelle Hughes April 2025 Footnotes: 1 Henry, Paul, An Irish Portrait, The Autobiography of Paul Henry, B.T. Batsford Ltd., 1951, Chapter IV, The New Life, p.49
Paul Henry RHA (1877-1958) Connemara Landscape with Cottages Oil on canvas, 30 x 38cm (11¾ x 15'') Signed Provenance: Jefferson Smurfit Collection; their sale, these rooms 7/12/2016; private collection. Literature: Smurfit Art Collection 2001, full page illustration p.67; provisionally numbered 1310 in Dr. S.B. Kennedy's catalogue raisonné of Paul Henry's work.
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) LAKE AND MOUNTAINS IN CONNEMARA, 1933-6 oil on canvas signed lower right h:16 w:24 in. Provenance: Sotheby's, Slane Castle, 26 June 1979, lot 552; Private collection Literature: Kennedy, Dr S.B., Paul Henry: Paintings, Drawings and Illustrations, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2007, p. 268, catalogue no. 851 (illustrated) The 1930s was a critical decade for Paul Henry which saw him exhibit extensively at home, in Europe and the United States. Combridge's Gallery in Dublin hosted the first of two one-man shows at the beginning of the decade and became his regular Dublin venue for the next twenty years. The late Dr SB Kennedy, author of the catalogue raisonné of Henry's work, noted, "This period in Henry's oeuvre demonstrates his particular understanding of the landscape borne through the experience of living in such places, a consciousness of the soft subtle terrain and dankness of the bog, the meagre lifestyle of the people it supports and the paucity of any crops grown there, the moody stillness of the scene with its suggestion of a life unchanged for centuries." Regarding the present work Kennedy notes, "An almost identical composition to 'Cottages by the Lake, Outer Killary, Connemara (catalogue no. 848) [12 by 16in., Private collection] and 'A Blue Day' (catalogue no. 920) [18 by 22in., Private collection]. Possibly a scene in Co. Kerry. Dated 1933-1936 on stylistic grounds." Lake and Mountains in Connemara, 1933-1936 is an exceptional example from the artist's later work. The foreground is flooded with a wide expanse of water that stretches the breath of composition, which is significantly wider (8 inches) than it is tall, immersing the viewer into the scene. This device creates an immediacy to the painting, as though it were a snapshot of a moment of fine weather captured swiftly by the artist. The reality however could not have been further from the truth and the artist's sketchbooks, now held in the collection of the National Gallery of Ireland (NGI), demonstrate Henry's meticulous planning, attention to detail and the discipline required to create such deceptively simple masterpieces. The gently rippling water binds the composition reflecting both the neat cluster of white-washed cottages and their turf stacks as well as the pale, cumulus clouds in the backdrop. The body of water is punctuated on either side by grassland executed in brisk upward brushstrokes of delicately impastoed paint. A strip of still water, handled in a brighter blue, marks a change to the movement of the water and halts the eye before it reaches the focal point of the scene. Centre stage, the tight dwellings emphasise the isolation of communities in the west and their reliance upon each other and the land which surrounds them. Thicker and more vigorous brushstrokes here 'push forward' the middle-ground and contrast with the smoothly finished blues and greys in the upper portion of the canvas. When the present work was painted, Paul Henry's reputation in Irish art was secured and this was partly as a result of the mass distribution of tourism posters incorporating images of his paintings as well as the sale of photolithographic prints from his original oils, many of which were sold through Combridge's during this time. His views of the landscape also coincided with the need to create a new visual identity for the country after 1922, Kennedy writes, "the new state urgently required a sense of identity and cultural history that would link its ancient past in a morally unbroken way with the present. Thus, with the subsequent espousal of the West in particular the landscape qua place suddenly assumed an importance it had never had before… In this process, Henry's work fitted the bill beautifully." Saorstát Eireann, the Irish Free State Official Handbook published in 1932 the year before this work was painted, was among the publications to use Paul Henry's images to project this popular vision of Irish identity. The quality of his painting and his role in the creation of Ireland's modern history - almost 100 years on - is what has helped etch his work into the Irish psyche so much so that, even though his images no longer represent what the country means today (and perhaps they never did) they are still inextricably linked to what is considered quintessentially Irish. And therein lies their enduring appeal. Work from his later years is among the most highly sought after in the artist's oeuvre with the NGI, Irish Museum of Modern Art and the Hugh Lane Gallery in Dublin among other significant public collections all holding examples from this period. The appearance of an example of this quality on the market today represents an exceptional opportunity to acquire a museum quality painting of lasting appeal. Adelle Hughes, February 2024 For further reading see Kennedy, chapters nine and ten, p67-73.
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) COTTAGES, CONNEMARA oil on board signed lower right; bearing James Magee label on reverse h:13 w:16 in. Provenance: Acquired directly from the artist and thence by descent; de Veres, 23 November 2021, Dublin, lot 37; Private collection The harsh reality of life in the west of Ireland during the era in which Paul Henry was painting can be felt to great effect in Cottages, Connemara. Here, the changeable nature of Irish weather, particularly on the Atlantic coast, is captured in a dramatic burst of storm clouds gathering atop the distant mountains which dominate more than half of the picture plane. Their looming presence towers over the diminutive cottages and haystacks that appear to lie perilously close to the edge of a rocky precipice. The large angular rocks positioned in the lower left foreground add to the intensity of the composition. These, coupled with the skyscape above, present an image of a vulnerable existence teetering on the brink when confronted with the overwhelming power of the natural world which surrounds them. Paul Henry would have been more than familiar with the hardship of life in the west having lived for a number of years in Achill with his first wife, the artist Grace Henry, from 1910. In this painting Henry offers some relief from the ominous weather with a deftly placed break in the clouds left of centre; a device which also creates more depth in the composition. A shaft of light also breaks through, hitting the whitewashed exterior of the homes and the rock-strewn land around them. The original owner of Cottages, Connemara - a friend of both Paul and Grace Henry - acquired it, along with a number of other pictures, directly from the artist.
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) WEST OF IRELAND LANDSCAPE, 1925-1935 oil on canvas signed lower left; with original Combridge Gallery framing label on reverse; also with Oriel Gallery label on reverse; with inscription ["Cottage & Peat-Stacks"] in another hand also on reverse h:15 w:18.50 in. Provenance: Adams, 10 March 1988, lot 62; Private collection; Oriel Gallery, Dublin, November 1998; Private collection; Whyte's, 31 May 2011, lot 26; Private collection; Whyte's, 28 November 2016, lot 32A; Private collection Literature: Kennedy, Dr S.B., Paul Henry: Paintings, Drawings and Illustrations, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2007, p.230, catalogue no. 646 In its original Combridge Gallery black frame, circa 1925-35. This was formerly thought to be a view of Clare Island from Achill (Kennedy 2007, p.230), but now, with a larger image than was available in the past, the view is almost certainly of Moyteoge and Achill Head, seen from the Keel to Dooagh road. Certainly the twin peaks to the left and the profile of the mountains are similar to those in Henry's Paysage Sinistre, 1914-15 (Kennedy, number 406), which also depicts the scene, and the accompanying photograph which was taken from further south at Killeenabausty on Achill's Atlantic Drive. The predominating mountain must therefore be Croaghaun and the barely indicated stretch of beach to the right, where the high ground meets the sea, is Keem Strand. West of Ireland Landscape is dated 1925-35 on stylistic grounds and the strong colours and moderate impasto of the paint in the foreground are typical of Henry's work at that time. Time and again Henry made paintings in his studio from sketches done much earlier. He often, too, painted variations on a theme. A characteristic of his output from about 1916-18 onwards, as in this picture, is an absence of people as he grew more interested in the landscape per se. And yet his ubiquitous cottages and turf stacks evoke a redolence of humanity and of our relationship to the very ground that supports us. Again, as here, Henry's compositions often have a sense of timelessness which lends a gentle feeling of monumentality to his work. Dr S. B. Kennedy
(Irish, 1976-1958) Lithograph in colors, signed in the stone, other information under the matte, "From the painting by Paul Henry reproduction color print mounted on mat board, signed in the print, other identifying information under mat: "From the painting by Paul Henry, R.H.A., "Conneaught Fishing Village, Printed in England, Copyright W. J. Stacey, London," sight size: 17 1/4 x 21 in., framed size: 24 1/2 x 28 in.
Paul Henry RHA RUA (1876-1958) Connemara Landscape with Turf Stack Oil on canvas board, 30 x 40cm (11¾ x 15¾'') Signed Provenance: with John Magee's Gallery, Belfast, label verso; with handwritten date 'Dec.'43', stock no.622-33; Private Collection Paul Henry was born in Belfast in 1877 and attended the Belfast School of Art. He travelled to Paris in 1898, where he studied at the Academie Julian and was influenced by the rural realism of Jean Francois Millet. He later moved to Academie Carmen recently opened by James Abbott McNeill Whistler, whose influence can be seen in the present work. In Paris he met his first wife Grace and in 1903 they were married. After a period in London working as an illustrator, Henry moved to Achill Island in 1912, where the local landscape became the main subject for his oil paintings. In 1920 Henry moved to Dublin where, along with his wife and other painters such as Jack B. Yeats and Mary Swanzy, he helped found the Society of Dublin Painters. He stayed in Dublin for twelve years, with frequent trips back to the West of Ireland, and then moved to Co. Wicklow with the artist Mabel Young, who he married in 1954. The present work, which dates to the late 1930s on stylistic grounds, displays Henry’s keen interest in pure landscape. It is taken to a pure form in this work, a simple scene, dominated by the range of grey hued mountains and stratified clouds with subtle pale yellow and off-white tints but this is off-set by the turf stacks, set perilously close to the bogland river that meanders through the landscape. The same turf stacks remind the viewer that the human presence is never too far away and that even a remote Connemara bogland bears the impact of man’s effort to sustain himself. Henry often painted evening scenes, enjoying the changing of the light, as dusk is falling, casting shadows across the landscape. A sense of stillness pervades the scene and he has used a limited palette to distil everything down to the essential elements. Widely considered the most significant Irish landscape painter, Paul Henry’s works can be found in the collections of the National Gallery of Ireland, Hugh Lane Gallery, Irish Museum of Modern Art, Ulster Museum, Victoria and Albert Museum in London, and the National Museum of Modern Art in Paris.
Paul Henry RHA (1877-1958) A Bog Road in Kerry (c.1934/9) Oil on canvas 35 x 40cm (13¾ x 15¾”) Signed; inscribed with title verso Provenance: Sale, these rooms, 9/10/1980, lot 44, illus.; with Oriel Gallery, Dublin; Private collection, Dublin. Literature: Dr. S.B. Kennedy, 'Paul Henry - Paintings, Drawings, Illustrations', Yale 2007, Catalogue no.904, Illus. p. 279 A feint inscription on the reverse suggests that the title is A Bog Road in Kerry and the composition, freedom of brushwork and style certainly confirms this suggestion and also suggests a likely date in the mid to late 1930s. The work is very much in keeping with Henry’s work of this period and is aligned with those works that Dr. S.B. Kennedy suggests are scenes in Co. Kerry - with simple bogland compositions and vigorous brushstrokes. The delicately modeled deep blue mountains provide a sense of solidity to the work and the inky blackness of the turf stacks grounds the composition, while the pale browns in the foreground generates much welcome lightness. Paul Henry liked the Dingle Peninsula and was always happy there. ‘It is lovely. Wherever one turns there is material for dozens of pictures’, he wrote to James Healy, his dealer in America. He explored the whole area (Mabel, his second wife, had a motor car) which reminded him of Cape Cod, ‘very lonely & wild but not very paintable...nicer at a distance’, he ventured to Healy. But he made numerous sketches which later, in the studio, were turned into paintings. This painting may have been made from one of those sketches.
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) MOUNTAINS AND LAKE, c.1930-6 oil on board signed lower left h:7.50 w:11 in. Provenance: Charles Gilmore Gallery, Belfast, 2011; Private collection Literature: Kennedy, Dr S.B., Paul Henry: Paintings, Drawings and Illustrations, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 2007, p. 253, catalogue no. 769 (illustrated in colour) Dated 1930 to 1936 on stylistic grounds in Dr SB Kennedy's catalogue raisonné, Mountain and Lake (numbered 769) depicts a small cluster of whitewashed cottages before a body of water with a blue grey mountain range and an expanse of sky in the distance. Compositionally, the painting bears similarities to a number of slightly earlier works such as the larger, A Village in Connemara c.1922-29 (sold through Whyte's, 30 November 2004, lot 55 €120,000). That example, Kennedy suggests, depicted Achill Sound with Corraun in the background and uses a similar device to the present work to draw the viewer into the scene; the strategic positioning in the foreground of the grey rocks protruding from the grass to the left of centre. In the present work, a still body of water - reflecting the static clouds above it - and the modest dwellings with their neat turf stacks to the right complete the first part of the painting which is executed in coarse, impastoed brushstrokes that evoke the harsh reality of life in the west. A dark middle ground stretches the length of the board dividing the painting in two. There is a noticeable difference between the handling of the paint to the upper portion of the composition, which is softer in tone and with a more delicate application of the medium. The late 1920s and early 1930s were tumultuous years in Paul Henry's personal life, many of which were spent on Achill. The break-up of his marriage to first wife, Grace, was a drawn-out affair and the stresses, both financial and emotional, took their toll. Professionally however, his reputation was secure, due in part to the mass distribution of posters based on his paintings, which became lasting images of the Irish landscape. Two striking examples from the 1930s can be found in the collection of the National Gallery of Ireland (NGI 4077 & 4734) one of which was bequeathed by his second wife, Mrs M. Henry (née Young) in 1974. Adelle Hughes November 2024
Paul Henry RHA (1876-1958) KILLARY BAY, CONNEMARA, c.1910-15 oil on canvas signed lower left; titled in pencil on stretcher on reverse h:14 w:16 in. Provenance: Acquired directly from the artist by the previous owner's grandfather; Whyte's, 28 May 2018, lot 27; Private collection Henry painted a number of sailing boats like this, but in later years. This is the earliest noted as the dot in the signature illustrates. It would have been done shortly after he settled on Achill between 1910 and 1915 or thereabouts. The overall treatment of the scene is typical of Henry: from the handling of the clouds; the gentle light catching the mountains; the near foreground and especially the light striking the water are all typical Henry. Acquired by descent from the previous owner's grandfather, an amateur artist who painted with Paul Henry in the West of Ireland. Dr S.B. Kennedy April 2018
Attributed to Paul Henry (Irish, 1877-1958) An estuary landscape, west of Ireland, maybe Connemara Signed lower right Oil on artists board Dimensions: 12 in. (H) x 15.5 in. (W)
PAUL HENRY [Irish] 1876-1958 [attributed] "Hillside Village" oil on canvas, signed lower right, 72x56cms, framed. Condition: some small canvas thins, requires cleaning. Please read the Terms & Conditions of Auction before placing a bid. These T&C's are applicable to each lot in this Auction. Any available provenance or documentation will be included with the description, if not included, assume it to be unknown or missing. Most lots are either ex estate or storage, have not been submitted for authentication, verification or expertising and for this reason, are offered UNRESERVED. It is the responsibility of intending buyers to do their own research and due diligence before submitting an offer. We do not offer returns or refunds - ALL SALES ARE FINAL.
Paul Henry, RHA (Irish 1877-1958) Lough Derg, photo-lithographic coloured print, illustration used by L.M.S. Travel Company Ireland This Year, 54 x 54cm.
Henry, Paul 1876 - 1958 LMS - Connemara - Ireland this Year Lithograph ca. 1928 35 x 24.8 in. (89 x 63 cm) Printer: no information Condition Details: (B-) on linen (old), tears and creases at the edges and in image, minor surface browning, minor staining, top and bottom margins a little trimmed#Ireland #Travel
Paul Henry, RHA (1876-1958). Sheephaven, Donegal, Ireland For Holidays. Original 1920's Poster. Illustrated folder from any London Midland or Scottish Railway Station or Agency. E.R.O. 53350, Staffords, Netherfield. c.25in wide, c.40in tall
![PAUL HENRY [IRISH] 1876-1958 [ATTRIBUTED] "HILLSIDE VILLAGE" OIL ON CANVAS, SIGNED LOWER RIGHT, 72X56CMS, FRAMED. CONDITION: SOME SMALL CANVAS THINS, REQUIRES CLEANING.](https://image.invaluable.com/housePhotos/WAArtAuctions/50/782650/H4675-L389445515.jpg)
