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Frederick E. McWilliam HRUA RA (1909-1992)
Woman of Belfast 10 - Woman in a Bomb Blast (1972)
Bronze, 22cm long x 13.5cm high x 9cm deep (8½ x 5¼ x 3½'')
Signed and numbered 1/5
(The...
Frederick E. McWilliam HRUA RA (1909-1992)
Woman of Belfast 10 - Woman in a Bomb Blast (1972)
Bronze, 22cm long x 13.5cm high x 9cm deep (8½ x 5¼ x 3½'')
Signed and numbered 1/5
(The plaster maquette, collection of F.E.McWilliam Gallery and Studio, Banbridge.)
Exhibited: Waddington 1973; McClelland 1973, cat. no. 10; Arts Councils of Ireland 1981, cat.no.106, illus. p. 72; Gordon Gallery 1990; Austin Desmond 1990; Banbridge 2008, exh. Cat., illus. p.101; Highlanes Gallery 2009.
Literature: The Sculpture of F.E McWilliam, Denise Ferran & Valerie Holman, Lund Humphries in association with the Henry Moore Foundation, no. 386, p. 156.
When McWilliam began modelling in clay and casting in bronze, a new freedom entered the sculptors figurative work as in Girls 1969 - 1971, Women of Belfast 1972 1974, Banners 1975 1976 and Legs 1977 - 78.
Although McWilliam left Ireland at age 18 and lived in London most of his life, he maintained close links with family and friends in Northern Ireland and the troubles affected him deeply especially the bomb which exploded in the Abercorn restaurant in Belfast, March 1972.
McWilliam wrote in July 1973 that his Women of Belfast are concerned with violence, with one particular aspect, bomb-blast the women as victim of mans stupidity. As they have a common subject matter these sculptures have no titles woman affected by violence women of Belfast.
It was significant for McWilliam that the two deaths, that day, were women as were many of the seriously injured. He uses the drapery of these unfortunate and unsuspecting victims, to emphasise the impact of the blast, reminiscent of the Greek figure, Nike of Samothrace. His drawing ability, honed by his student days at the Slade in London, are evident in the outstretched limbs, fingers and toes which express human suffering while the faces remain anonymous. In 1973 McWilliam wrote about these works: The figures are small because it was more convenient to make them small..If you have something to say it makes no difference whether you whisper or shout, so long as it is audible.
Dr Denise Ferran
November 2018
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