Title: ‘EVIE HONE, Stained Glass Artist of Marlay.
Speaker: Peadar Curran
Time: @ 7:45 PM
Location: Iona Pastoral Centre
About: Peadar Curran
Peadar Curren grew up in Dalkey and he has had a lifelong interest in the history of the locality. He has lectured extensively on the subject to several local history societies of which he is a member. He observed the archaeological excavations on Dalkey Island in the 1950s and he was a graduate of the Lord Mayor’s Local History course in 2016.
He frequently gives talks and leads discussions on the history and heritage of Marlay Park and its surrounding areas. He has delivered presentations on various aspects of Marlay Park, including its often overlooked features and historical development from a medieval grange to a Regency-era walled demesne, and later its transformation into a public park.
Curran has also explored the connections of notable figures to Marlay House, such as the stained-glass artist Evie Hone, who lived in the Dower House on the estate and established her studio in Marlay House. His presentations often focus on built heritage elements such as entrance gates, bridges with unique keystone motifs, and the history of the La Touche family’s mausoleum.
AI-generated answer. Sources below.
Sources:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/evie-hone-stained-glass-artist-of-marlay-tickets-1359034521839
https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/artsandculture/arid-41671469.html
https://www.dlrcoco.ie/dlr-events/event/walk-marlay-talk-peadar-curran
https://www.dlrcoco.ie/news/general-news/discover-your-local-heritage-talks-tours-2024-spring-heritage-programme
https://www.independent.ie/regionals/wicklow/bray-news/local-notes/around-the-districts-enniskerry/a1573557974.html
https://killineyhistoryie.fandom.com/wiki/Talk_by_Peadar_Curran_on_4th_February_2025
https://thecircular.org/the-story-and-the-beauty-of-marley-park/
https://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/gaa/arid-40086521.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marlay_Park
https://www.discoverireland.ie/dublin/marlay-park
https://wanderboat.ai/attractions/ireland/dun-laoghaire-rathdown/marlay-park-playground/Ec7HeFLDSiqhXtqoXaPzMA
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g186605-d12288128-Reviews-or10-Marlay_Park-Dublin_County_Dublin.html
Evie Hone Stained Glass Artist
Awards:
honorary doctorate, Trinity College Dublin (1953); honorary member of Royal Hibernian Academy (1955).
Principal works:
Armorial windows and Pentecost (Blackrock College Chapel, 1937–41); My Four Green Fields (1939); Saint Brigid (Loughrea Cathedal, 1942); windows for St. Stanislaus College, Tullabeg, County Offaly (1942); windows for Church of the Immaculate Conception, Kingscourt, County Cavan (1947–48); Eton College Chapel, Berkshire, England (1949–52); St. Michael’s Church, Highgate, London (1954).
Background:
Evie Hone was descended from a remarkable family of Flemish artists who settled in Britain and Ireland in the 16th and 17th centuries. One of them, Galyon Hone, completed the windows for King’s College in Cambridge. Another of her ancestors was the painter Nathaniel Hone (1718–1784). Nathaniel’s two sons, Horace and John Camillus, were also painters.
In 1937, Hone was received into the Catholic Church at Blackrock College Chapel in Dublin by its president Dr. John Charles McQuaid, who had commissioned windows for the college chapel from Michael Healy. McQuaid subsequently commissioned work from Hone and, when he became archbishop of Dublin in 1940, was an enthusiastic champion of her work.
Evie Hone, became a renowned Irish stained-glass artist, who lived and worked in Marlay Park, specifically in the Dower House located within the park’s courtyard, where she established her studio in Marlay House. She is best known for her work in stained glass, a medium she began exploring in 1933 after initially establishing a reputation as a painter in oils and gouaches. Hone joined An Túr Gloine, a prominent Dublin stained-glass cooperative, and remained there until its dissolution in 1944 following the death of Sarah Purser. After this, she set up her own studio at Marlay Grange, Rathfarnham, where she produced some of her finest works.
Her most celebrated piece is the large east window at Eton College Chapel, Windsor, completed in 1952, which covers 900 square feet and comprises over 40,000 pieces of glass, bringing her international fame. Other significant works include the ‘My Four Green Fields’ window, commissioned by the Irish government for the New York World Fair in 1939, which won first prize in its category. She also created windows for various churches across Ireland, including the Jesuit colleges at Tullabeg, Clongowes Wood, and Rockwell College, as well as the Church of St. Peter and Paul in Athenry.
Hone’s connection to Marlay Park is deeply celebrated, and events are held there to honor her legacy. A talk titled “Evie Hone, Stained Glass Artist of Marlay” was scheduled for 3 June 2025 at Marlay Park House, and another event on 30 April 2025 marked the 70th anniversary of her passing, taking place in the room next to her former studio. She died on 13 March 1955 while on her way to mass in Rathfarnham. Her artistic legacy, bridging modernist painting and stained glass, continues to be recognized, with her works featured in collections across Ireland, the UK and America.
Partially AI-generated answer. Sources below.
Sources:
https://www.originalstrands.com/post/evie-hone-acclaimed-irish-stained-glass-artist
https://www.manresa.ie/about/manresa-campus/evie-hone-at-manresa
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/evie-hone-stained-glass-artist-of-marlay-tickets-1359034521839
https://www.dlrcoco.ie/dlr-events/event/spring-talks-evie-hone-stained-glass-artist-marlay-spring-into-heritage-2025
https://tropter.com/en/ireland/dublin/marlay-park
https://www.encyclopedia.com/women/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/hone-evie-1894-1955
https://www.europeana.eu/en/stories/five-trailblazing-female-stained-glass-artists
https://bloomsite.wordpress.com/2014/11/07/other-bloomers-shakers-the-awakening-of-evie-hone/
https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/surprising-neglect-of-famous-stained-glass-artist-1.295515
https://www.invaluable.com/artist/hone-evie-8fewy1aw5s/sold-at-auction-prices/
https://www.adams.ie/irish-artist-directory/Evie-Hone/art-sold-at-auction
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Knocklyon History Society 
