Arthur Armstrong, RHA, (1924 - 1996) Glendalough Oil on board, 75 x 90cm (29.5 x 35.5'') Signed, inscribed verso Exhibited: Dublin, The Oireachtas Art Exhibition, 1969; Dublin ROSC '71, 'The Irish...

Arthur Armstrong, RHA, (1924 - 1996) Glendalough Oil on board, 75 x 90cm (29.5 x 35.5'') Signed, inscribed verso Exhibited: Dublin, The Oireachtas Art Exhibition, 1969; Dublin ROSC '71, 'The Irish Imagination 1959 - 1971' Arthur Armstrong is one of the strongest of Irish painters in his techniques; he uses colours with tremendous confidence and his pictures are above all else, solid and well defined. In many of his best pictures he uses plaster boldly and then paints on top of the plaster. The result produces a strong three-dimensional effect. Highly successful examples are his paintings of Glendalough and Dun Aengus. His ability to diversify his colouring and retain an underlying unity is one of the most satisfying aspects of his larger works. In his paintings of Connemara for instance, Arthur Armstrong succeeds in intimately projecting the physical features of the area - rocks, deserted houses, mountain and sea, while at the same time presenting the panoramic grandeur of the whole countryside. This kind of painting demands not only courage but visual imagination attended by a splendour of technique, both qualities which Armstrong obviously possesses in abundance. Donal Foley

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