CONTEXT
This TV channel started in 1961 and helped people in Ireland share new ideas and debates
What is RTÉ?
Ballagh’s main medium
What is oil/acylic on canvas
Name two natural materials Maher uses to talk about femininity and identity.
What are berries/rosehips and hair or thorns?
In Ballagh’s work, this principle helps place the most important symbol or text where the eye goes first
What is emphasis?
This 1969 self‑portrait says the artist’s workspace is also a place for social critiqu
My studio
This conflict in Northern Ireland pushed many artists to make more political work
What are the Troubles?
Name one area outside painting where Ballagh used his design skills to reach the public.
What are postage stamps, banknotes, or theatre sets
n The Berry Dress, this slow change over time strengthens the message about beauty fading
What is decay/drying of the berries?
In Maher’s work, repeating organic shapes (like berries/tongues) creates this sense of flow
What is rhythm/repetition
his 1994 dress sculpture challenges how society shapes “feminine” behaviour and looks
Berry Dress
Name two big changes after 1960 that opened opportunities in Ireland’s culture and education
What are free secondary education and economic expansion/foreign investment
The “trick-the-eye” technique in the Noel Browne portrait that uses real pebbles.
What is trompe‑l’œil?
This myth inspires a work about having a voice that isn’t believed
Who is Cassandra?
The element whose crisp, clean quality makes Ballagh’s figures and icons easy to read
Line
his portrait honours a minister who fought for the Mother and Child scheme
Portrait of Noel Browne
This worldwide art movement encouraged Irish artists to try new ideas and materials
What is Modernism?
Name two formal features (art elements) that make his images clear and bold.
What are bright Pop colours and clean, sharp lines?
One traditional craft technique Maher reuses in a new way to make a point.
What is sewing, weaving, or braiding with unusual materials?
In Berry Dress, the soft fruit versus sharp pins shows tension through this element
TEXTURE
A piece where lambs’ tongues become a heavy chain about being ignored when telling the truth
Cassandra’s Necklace
One way Irish art colleges changed in the 1970s to support new art ideas.
What is accepting Modern Art and updating courses to encourage experimentation?
The composition shape in the Noel Browne portrait that suggests sacrifice.
What is a cruciform (cross-shaped) composition?
Explain how one material in Maher’s work carries meaning.
What are rosehips and pins in Berry Dress showing beauty plus danger/restriction?
In Ballagh, this type of balance (e.g., cruciform) steadies complex symbols.
symmetrical balance
1n My Studio, name two formal choices (AE +DP) that turn tools into symbols of power.
bold Pop colours and repeated, cleanly outlined tools (rhythm/emphasis)