Gabriel Hayes facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Gabriel Hayes
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Hayes in 1942 working on a relief for the façade of the new Department of Industry and Commerce building Kildare Street, Dublin.
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| Born |
Mary Gabriel Hayes
25 August 1909 Holles Street Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
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| Died | 28 October 1978 (aged 69) Dublin
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| Nationality | Irish |
| Alma mater | Dublin Metropolitan School of Art |
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Notable work
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sculpture |
| Spouse(s) | Seán P. Ó Ríordáin |
Gabriel Hayes (born August 25, 1909 – died October 28, 1978) was a talented Irish artist from Dublin. She was famous for her amazing sculptures and for designing medals. Gabriel also painted beautiful pictures. She studied art in Dublin, France, and Italy.
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Gabriel Hayes's Early Life
Gabriel Hayes was born in Dublin on August 25, 1909. Her full name was Mary Gabriel Hayes. She was mostly raised by her aunt. Gabriel went to school at Dominican College in Dublin.
In 1925, she started studying art at the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art (DMSA). After a short time in the United States, she moved to France. She spent three years in Montpellier, learning French and visiting art galleries. Later, she moved to Paris to continue her art journey.
Gabriel returned to Dublin in 1930 and rejoined the DMSA. She spent her summer breaks exploring Italy or France. At the DMSA, she focused on painting. Her teachers included famous artists like Seán Keating and Oliver Sheppard. In her second year, she won a special scholarship. She finished her studies in 1936.
Family Life
In 1936, Gabriel Hayes married Seán P. Ó Ríordáin. He was an archaeologist working at the National Museum of Ireland. They moved to Monkstown, County Cork when Seán became a professor at University College Cork. They had a daughter and a son. After her husband passed away, Gabriel moved to an area near Celbridge, County Kildare.
Gabriel Hayes's Art Career
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Even while she was a student, Gabriel Hayes showed her paintings in exhibitions. In 1934, a newspaper praised her oil painting called The Goddess of the Moon. Her large painting of St Brigid was also very popular in 1936. She painted a portrait of Professor Aloys Fleischmann that got a lot of attention in 1938.
Gabriel also illustrated two children's story books. These were Tales of Tara (1934) and The Long-Tailed Hen and other stories (1935).
Designing Irish Coins
One of Gabriel Hayes's most famous achievements was designing several coins for Ireland. When Ireland changed to decimal currency in 1971, she designed the halfpenny, penny, and two pence coins. She even offered her ideas without a competition! She also created the lettering and decorations for these coins.
Later Works and Recognition
In 1977, just a year before she died, Gabriel won an award at the Oireachtas Art Exhibition. She won for her wooden sculpture called Grainne Mhaol Looking Out to Sea. This sculpture showed the head of Grace O'Malley, a famous 16th-century Irish leader known as "The Pirate Queen."
In 2005, An Post (the Irish postal service) released stamps celebrating Irish women artists. Gabriel Hayes was honored on a 65c stamp, which featured a picture of her sculpture, The Three Graces (1941).
Her sculpture "The Cork Bowler" was sold for a high price at an auction in London in 2019. This shows how much her art is valued.
Where to See Her Works
Gabriel Hayes's art can be found in many public and religious buildings across Ireland. Here are some examples:
- "Portrait of a young Boy" - This painting was sold at Adams Auction House in Dublin in 2020.
- Stations of the Cross (1933) - These plaster reliefs are in Willington Parish, Templeogue, Dublin.
- The Three Graces (1941) - You can see this sculpture at the Dublin Institute of Technology, Cathal Brugha Street, Dublin.
- Bas-reliefs (1942) - These carvings are on the front of the Department of Industry and Commerce building on Kildare Street, Dublin.
- Two bronze statues (1944) - These are on the side altars of Glanworth church, County Cork.
- Stone statue of Madonna and child (1950) - This is in the grounds of the Servite Priory, Benburb, County Tyrone.
- Carving of the Ascension and two mosaics (1953/4) - These are on the front of the parish church in Gurranabraher, Cork. There's also a mosaic inside the church.
- Stone Madonna (1954) - This is on the front of the parish church in Leixlip, County Kildare.
- Bronze Madonna (1955) - This is on the front of the church in the Black Valley, County Kerry.
- Statue of Our Lady (1955) - This is above the Franciscan Friary, Merchants Quay, Dublin.
- Second of fourteen Stations of the Cross (1957) - This stone carving is in Saint John's Church, Tralee, County Kerry. The other stations are paintings by her teacher, Seán Keating.
- Stone statue of Saint Brendan (1957) - This is also in Saint John's Church, Tralee, County Kerry.
- Bronze statue of Luke Wadding (1958) - You can find this in Greyfriars street, Waterford.
- Bronze Madonna (1960) - This is on the front of the church in Westport, County Mayo.
- Stations of the Cross (1958–76) - These Portland stone carvings are in Galway Cathedral. They include 28 life-sized figures.
- Stone Holy Family (1970) - This is on the front of the school of the Holy Family in Newbridge, County Kildare.
- The Irish halfpenny, penny and two penny decimal coins (1971) - These coins were used in Ireland until the euro was introduced in 2002.
