Robert Ballagh | |
|---|---|
 Ballagh in 2014 | |
| Born | 22 September 1943 Dublin, Ireland |
| Education | Bolton Street College of Technology |
| Known for | Painting, design |
| Notable work | More than 70 Irish postage stamps, "Series C" Irish banknotes |
| Spouse |
Elizabeth Carabini
(m. 1967; died 2011) |
| Children | 2, including Rachel |
| Awards | Aosdána membership[1] |
Robert Ballagh (/bæləx/; born 22 September 1943) is an Irish artist, painter and designer. Born in suburban Dublin,[2][3] Ballagh's initial painting style was strongly influenced by pop art. He is also known for his hyperrealistic renderings of Irish literary, historical and establishment figures,[4] or designing more than 70 Irish postage stamps and a series of banknotes, and for work on theatrical sets, including for works by Samuel Beckett and Oscar Wilde, and for Riverdance in multiple locations. Ballagh's work has been exhibited at many solo and group shows since 1967, in Dublin, Cork, Brussels, Moscow, Sofia, Florence, Lund and others, as well as touring in Ireland and the US. His work is held in a range of museum and gallery collections. He was chosen to represent Ireland at the 1969 Biennale de Paris.
A lifelong resident of Dublin, he was made a member of Ireland's academy of artists, Aosdána He became the founding chairperson of the Irish Visual Artists Rights Organisation. He has received a number of awards, including an honorary doctorate from UCD. He has published a book of photography of Dublin, and a volume of memoirs.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
aosdanabiowas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
rhaexhibbiowas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "'I'm popular with the public yet ignored by the art establishment'". The Irish Times. 19 June 2010. Retrieved 20 December 2010.
- ^ "Irish Art & Artists: past & present". Whytes Irish Art Auctioneers and Valuers. Archived from the original on 24 August 2002. Retrieved 20 December 2010.