Jeanne Sheehy (15 September 1939 – 28 September 1999) was an
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
art historian.
Personal life and work
Jeanne Iseult Sheehy was born to Edward Sheehy, a distinguished critic, and Anna Kelly, a graphic artist in September 1939 in Dublin. They had one other son David, a picture restorer. She was educated through Irish at
Eccles St. Dominican convent before going, in 1957, to
University College Dublin
University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...
to study French and English literature. She graduated with an arts degree in 1960. After graduation Sheehy studied art history at the
École du Louvre
The École du Louvre is an institution of higher education and grande école located in the Aile de Flore of the Louvre Palace in Paris, France. It is dedicated to the study of archaeology, art history, anthropology and epigraphy.
Admission is ...
from 1961 to 1963 and also worked as an assistant. She went on to teach in the UK at
Loughborough
Loughborough ( ) is a market town in the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England, the seat of Charnwood Borough Council and Loughborough University. At the 2011 census the town's built-up area had a population of 59,932 , the second larg ...
and
Newport Art Colleges. Before going back to college, Sheehy also worked for
Donald Davies
Donald Watts Davies, (7 June 1924 – 28 May 2000) was a Welsh computer scientist who was employed at the UK National Physical Laboratory (NPL).
In 1965 he conceived of packet switching, which is today the dominant basis for data communic ...
as a woven fabric designer in
Enniskerry
Enniskerry (historically ''Annaskerry'', from ) is a village in County Wicklow, Ireland. The population was 1,889 at the 2016 census.
Location
The village is situated on the Glencullen River in the foothills of the Wicklow Mountains in the ea ...
, County Wicklow.
In 1968, Sheehy went back to college to study art historical completing her M.Litt. in 1971 in
Trinity College Dublin
, name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin
, motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin)
, motto_lang = la
, motto_English = It will last i ...
under
Anne Crookshank
Anne Olivia Crookshank ''HRHA'' (3 January 1927 – 18 October 2016) was a pioneering Irish art historian, and emeritus professor of the history of art at Trinity College Dublin, the department she established in 1966.
Early life
Crookshank wa ...
. Her thesis was on
Walter Osborne
Walter Frederick Osborne (17 June 1859 – 24 April 1903) was an Irish impressionist and Post-Impressionism landscape and portrait painter, best known for his documentary depictions of late 19th century working class life. Most of his painti ...
and she worked on the catalogue of the exhibition of his work in the NGI, Dublin, and the Ulster Museum, Belfast (1983–4). From 1970 to 1973 Sheehy was both research assistant and co-author of
Fr Cyril Barrett SJ. They worked on chapters on the visual arts (1850–1922) in ''A new history of Ireland'' and collaborated on the catalogue to the Cork exhibition, 19th century Irish art (1991). In 1975, she moved to Oxford to lecturer. In 1983, Sheehy because the principal lecturer, at
Oxford Brookes University
Oxford Brookes University (formerly known as Oxford Polytechnic (United Kingdom), Polytechnic) is a public university, public university in Oxford, England. It is a new university, having received university status through the Further and High ...
(formerly Oxford Polytechnic). Sheehy was a founder member of the
Association of Irish Art Historians. She gave the annual lecture in May 1985. Sheehy helped to conserve Irish monuments despite moving to England and similarly helped to conserve buildings in the UK. She was on the committee of the
Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain
The Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain (SAHGB) is a United Kingdom learned society for people interested in the history of architecture.
Purpose
The Society exists to encourage interest in the history of architecture, to enab ...
, the Victorian group of the
and was a member of the Oxford diocesan advisory committee on the care of churches.
She retired months before her death which was on 28 September 1999 of
Amyloidosis
Amyloidosis is a group of diseases in which abnormal proteins, known as amyloid fibrils, build up in tissue. There are several non-specific and vague signs and symptoms associated with amyloidosis. These include fatigue, peripheral edema, weight ...
. She is buried at
Kilmacanogue
Kilmacanogue () is a village in north County Wicklow, Ireland.
Location and transport
The village lies on the junction of the R755 road to Roundwood and the N11 road, southeast of Bray town centre. It lies between the Little Sugar Loaf t ...
church,
County Wicklow
County Wicklow ( ; ga, Contae Chill Mhantáin ) is a county in Ireland. The last of the traditional 32 counties, having been formed as late as 1606, it is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is bordered by t ...
.
Writing
* ''Walter Osborne'' (1983)
* ''Irish Art and Architecture: From Prehistory to the Present'' (1993)
* ''J.J.McCarthy and the Gothic Revival in Ireland'' (1977)
* ''The Rediscovery of Ireland's Past: the Celtic Revival 1830-1930'' (1980)
* ''Walter Osborne: 1859-1903 (Lives of Irish Artists)'' (1991)
* ''Kingsbridge Station (Gatherum series)'' (1973)
* ''Lively Irishmen: the Ruskinian tradition in Ireland'', Irish Arts Review, iii, no 4 (winter 1986), 66–9.
* ''The education of Irish women artists’ in Irish women artists'', NGI exhibition catalogue, 1987
* ''The flight from Kensington: British artists at the Antwerp Academy'', Art History, xx (1997), 124–53
References
Sources
* ''The Independent'', 7 Oct. 1999;
* ''Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain Newsletter'', no. 72 (spring 2001) (obit.)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheehy, Jeanne
1939 births
1999 deaths
Alumni of University College Dublin
Irish art historians