UNIQUE artwork's in spired by the Celtic revival at the turn of the century is to be rescued from oblivion with some £150,000 worth of funding from the Department of Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht, including EU funding.
The money will be used to restore the Oratory of the Sacred Heart on the grounds of the former Domincan Convent in Dun Laoghaire, now being developed as a shopping centre by Monarch Properties. The inside walls are covered with a series of intricate decorations which recall motifs from the "golden age" of Celtic design found on the Book of Kells and elsewhere.
The oratory was decorated over 16 years from 1920 to 1936 in an extraordinary, labour of love by Sister Mary Concepta Lynch, a nun at the convent. Originally built to commemorate "the boys of Dun Laoghaire" who died in the mud of Flanders in the first World War, the restored monument will be complemented by a "peace garden designed by Marcus Thonett, a native of Cologne in Germany.
Sister Lynch was a skilled calligrapher who learned her craft from her father, Thomas Lynch, who in 1880 illuminated an 11 page vellum address which was described as "a complete and perfect renovation" of the ancient Irish tradition.
During the second half of the 19th century, "Celtic style" art was being consciously revived, with imitations of work from the Book of Kells, the Book of Currow and artefacts such as the Ardagh Chalice and the Cross of Cong. By the early years of this century, however, some artists felt confident enough to experiment with their own contemporary adaptations of the tradition.
Two schools developed, one working within traditional styles and the other bringing Celtic art into art nouveau and other pan European artistic movements. Sister Concepta's work is regarded as the chef d'oeuvre of the traditional school.
The restoration project was organised by a team which includes the assistant director of the National Gallery, Dr Brian Kennedy; Sister Frances Lally of the Dominican Convent; the director of Monarch Properties, Edward Sweeney; and Marcus Thonett and Veronica Heywood from Dun Laoghaire Arts Centre, which is based on the grounds of the convent.