Harry Kernoff facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Harry Kernoff
Kernoff in the 1920s
Born	Harry Aaron Kernoff (1900-01-09)9 January 1900 London, England
Died	25 December 1974(1974-12-25) (aged 74) Meath Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
Nationality	Irish
Education	Dublin Metropolitan School of Art
Known for	painter

Harry Aaron Kernoff (born January 9, 1900, died December 25, 1974) was a famous Irish painter. He loved to paint scenes of Dublin, like busy streets and famous buildings. He also created beautiful landscapes, woodcut pictures, and portraits of people. He even designed sets for plays!

Early Life and Art Training

Harry Aaron Kernoff was born in London on January 9, 1900. His dad, Isaac, was from Russia and made furniture. His mom, Katherine, came from an old Spanish-Jewish family. Harry learned to make furniture with his dad. He also went to primary school in London. From a young age, he loved art.

In May 1914, his family moved to Dublin, Ireland. Harry started taking art classes at night at the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art. In 1923, he won a special award called the Taylor scholarship. This allowed him to become a full-time art student during the day.

Painting Career and Style

Kernoff was inspired by other artists like Seán Keating and Patrick Tuohy. He painted many different things. He loved to show the Irish countryside, everyday life, and people's faces. He was especially interested in drawing Dublin's streets, buildings, and its people.

Kernoff noticed the problem of people not having jobs in Dublin. He showed this in paintings like Dublin kitchen (1923). From 1926 until he died, he showed his art at the Royal Hibernian Academy. He became a full member in 1936.

Portraits of Famous People

Kernoff had his art studio on Stamer Street in Dublin. From there, he painted many famous writers and theater stars. These included Brendan Behan, James Joyce, Flann O'Brien, Sean O'Casey, and W. B. Yeats. Kernoff liked to finish his portraits in just one sitting. He painted a lot of pictures!

From 1926 to 1958, he had his own art show every year in Dublin. Kernoff was also a member of the Studio Art Club. He helped design the Little Theatre in Dublin. He even designed the sets for plays like Sean O'Casey's The shadow of a gunman.

International Exhibitions and Travels

Kernoff's art was part of the painting event at the 1928 Summer Olympics art competition. He was also a member of a group called the Friends of Soviet Russia. His woodcut pictures were used in newspapers that supported workers and Irish independence in the 1930s and 1940s. He also designed the main picture for The Irish Workers' Voice newspaper.

In 1930, Kernoff visited Leningrad and Moscow with the Friends of Soviet Russia. He also worked against unfair political ideas in Dublin. Kernoff went to Paris in 1931. There, he showed paintings like Metro, Paris. In the same year, he had a show in London. He showed a painting called Ukraine peasant.

He also helped illustrate books for the Cuala Press in 1935 and 1937.

Later Works and Recognition

In the 1920s, Kernoff became interested in modern art. But he later went back to painting real-life scenes. He often painted social life in Irish towns and the countryside. He liked to visit the Palace Bar in Dublin. He would look for people to paint for his portraits.

Kernoff showed his art at two big world fairs. One was in Glasgow in 1938, and the other in New York in 1939. From the 1940s, Kernoff started painting many small oil paintings. He published his first book of woodcuts in 1942. Another book, A storyteller's childhood, came out in 1946.

In 1953, his art was shown at an Irish art exhibition in Aberystwyth, Wales. Kernoff traveled to Nova Scotia in 1957. He spent a year there painting. He also showed his watercolor paintings in Lugano, Italy, and Toronto, Canada, in 1964 and 1965.

Four of his portraits of W. B. Yeats were shown at the National Gallery of Ireland in 1965. Kernoff also served on the arts committee for the Municipal Gallery of Modern Art. In 1974, he became a life member of the United Arts Club in Dublin.

Death and Legacy

Kernoff passed away on December 25, 1974, in Meath Hospital, Dublin. His sister, Lena Kernoff, gave his papers to the National Library of Ireland in 1975.

His art style has been compared to L. S. Lowry. Some people say Kernoff was like a "Boswell in paint" for Dublin.

There is a story that one of Kernoff's paintings, A Bird Never Flew on One Wing, inspired the ears of the character Spock from the TV show Star Trek. This painting was in O'Brien's pub in Dublin. It's believed a Hollywood designer might have seen it there. This story might not be true, but it's interesting! The painting was sold in 2008 for a lot of money.

Images for kids

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  Kernoff's home at 13 Stamer Street