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Brian O'Doherty, 1928–2022, Patrick Ireland, 1972–2008

The Burial of Patrick Ireland2008

On 20 May 2008, after 36 years of making art as Patrick Ireland, Brian O’Doherty reclaimed his birth name with the burial of his alter ego in the grounds of IMMA. The burial was a gesture of reconciliation to celebrate the restoration of peace in Northern Ireland, just as his action in assuming the name Patrick Ireland was a protest at the British military presence in Northern Ireland and the failure of the authorities to ensure civil rights for all.

Medium	Limestone headstone, plaster cast Death Mask by Charles Simonds
Credit Line	IMMA Collection: Donation, 2008
Item Number	IMMA.2863
Copyright	Clare Lymer photography For copyright information, please contact the IMMA Collections team: [email protected].
Tags	Sculpture 2008 Brian O'Doherty Patrick Ireland

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Image Caption

Brian O'Doherty, Patrick Ireland, The Burial of Patrick Ireland, 2008, Limestone headstone, plaster cast Death Mask by Charles Simonds, Collection Irish Museum of Modern Art, Donation, 2008

About the Artist

Brian O'Doherty

Brian O'Doherty 1928–2022

Brian O’Doherty was born in Ireland and moved to New York in 1957. A qualified medical doctor, O’Doherty became renowned as an artist, writer, television host, and educator. Consistently exploring the multiple nature of identity, he adopted various personae, notably 'Patrick Ireland', who was buried at IMMA in 2008. Major retrospectives of O’Doherty/Ireland’s work were held at the National Museum of American Art, Dublin City Gallery, the Hugh Lane and the Grey Art Gallery, New York. Brian O'Doherty died at his apartment in Manhattan on Monday 7th of November 2022, at the age of 94.

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Patrick Ireland

Patrick Ireland 1972–2008

During the Irish Exhibition of Living Art in 1972, Brian O'Doherty, in a performance before 30 invited witnesses and assisted by artists Robert Ballagh and Brian King, undertook to sign his artworks Patrick Ireland 'until such time as the British military presence is removed from Northern Ireland'. After 36 years of making art as Patrick Ireland, O'Doherty reclaimed his birth name with the symbolic burial of his alter ego in the grounds of IMMA on the afternoon of Tuesday 20 May 2008.

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