Art inspired by 'The Quiet Man'

AFTER LAST weekend’s celebrations in London, a rather different diamond jubilee is being celebrated in Dublin this weekend.

It’s 60 years since the The Quiet Man – Hollywood’s epic Irish yarn directed by John Ford, starring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara, and partly shot on location in Cong, Co Mayo – first delighted cinema audiences in 1952.

The first John Ford Ireland Film Symposium is taking place in Dublin this weekend with screenings of the great director’s film as well as talks and concerts.

The Quiet Man is also the inspiration for a new collection of paintings – on view and on sale – at Dublin’s Doorway Gallery in South Frederick Street.

The paintings of scenes from the film were made by Northern Irish artist TJ Miles who said that his father “was a great fan of the movie” and recalled that “when we were kids growing up in Belfast during the Troubles, he would put the ‘feel good’ film on the TV and transport us all to the Ireland of our dreams”.

The exhibition was launched on Wednesday by film-maker Sé Merry Doyle, whose documentary John Ford: Dreaming The Quiet Man will be having its Dublin premiere tomorrow night in the IFI, Temple Bar, Dublin.

Miles has 29 paintings in the exhibition – priced from €795 to €2,950.

Sketches (€75) and prints (€12) are also for sale and might make ideal gifts from the ‘auld sod for anyone visiting family or friends in the US this summer.