Identity area
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Title
Date(s)
- Twentieth Century (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
Paper, pastel. 29 x 24.5 cm
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Archival history
22/08/2011
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Colour pastel portrait of Matt Talbot by Sean DIxon.
Seán Dixon completed this sketch after the Oblate Fathers in Inchicore commissioned him to paint a portrait of Matt Talbot. Regarded as the Patron Saint of dipsomaniacs, Talbot was an alcoholic until a sudden and permanent reformation at 28. After taking a vow of abstinence, the Dublin labourer devoted the rest of his life to work and prayer, leading a harsh ascetic existence of self-deprivation and punishment. When he was found dead on a Dublin street in 1925, Talbot’s body was covered in chains that must have caused acute pain. A statue of the pious northsider can be found next to the city’s Talbot Memorial Bridge.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
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Language of material
Script of material
Language and script notes
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
The picture is not entirely square but more of an irregular shape.
