Five figures stand in front of a building, leaning on railings. There is a space between each of them, and their shadows fall behind them.
Sinéad Lucey, HSE Heroes, The Wonderful Staff of St. Joseph’s Ward, St Columba’s Care Home, Thomastown, Co. Kilkenny, April 2020, 2020. © Sinéad Lucey.

Sinéad Lucey

HSE Heroes, The Wonderful Staff of St. Joseph’s Ward, St. Columba’s Care Home, Thomastown, Co. Kilkenny, April 2020, 2020

Oil on wood panel, 38 x 56 cm

This portrait was painted as part of ‘Portraits for HSE Heroes’, an artist initiative in support of frontline workers during the early period of the Covid-19 crisis. While paying tribute to the staff of St. Columba’s Hospital, the portrait also explores the relationships between the institution and the workers, both as a group and as individuals. The artist notes, “The bright April light creates a rhythmically coloured scene which acts as a counterpoint to the atmosphere of anxiety, experienced by the workers as they cared for their patients.”

 

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