IRISH & INTERNATIONAL ART 28 September 2026

108 75 Patrick Hennessy RHA (1915-1980) FIGURES ON HORSEBACK oil on canvas signed lower left 25 by 35in. (63.5 by 88.9cm) Frame Size: 34.5 by 44.5in. (87.6 by 113cm) Provenance: David Hendriks Gallery, Dublin, 1972; Collection of Joe ‘Tayto’ Murphy; Thence by descent to the present owner Figures on Horseback was painted in the early 1970s, a period when Hennessy and his partner, the artist Harry Robertson Craig RHA (1916-1984), were living in Morocco. They settled there permanently by 1968, having begun wintering in warmer climes as early as 1959 owing to Hennessy’s poor health. The North African light and landscape provided an abundance of inspiration to both artists who sent back their work to Ireland for exhibitions, predominantly at the Hendriks Gallery in Dublin and to the Guildhall Gallery, Chicago. These were prosperous years for Hennessy with Irish and American sales going from strength to strength, in spite of mixed reviews from Irish critics who often found it hard to categorise his style. Figures on Horseback shows two men trekking over sand dunes towards a rocky cliff face. The leader, on the darker coloured horse, wears a loose fitting white shirt with a white and red taqiyah cap on his head. Following is a man who looks more out of place in the desert setting, his hair a longer length, shirt more fitted, dark slacks and Minorquines sandals, peasant footwear made popular in France and Spain during this period. The desert heat is felt through the sharp shadows cast by the bright sunlight, the cloudless blue sky and only the slightest of relief comes from a gentle wind that blows the horses’ tails and manes and presses the men’s shirts against their skin. The composition is divided into three parts, a device used regularly by the artist. Fine sand imprinted with horse tracks draws in the viewer - inviting them to join the cavalcade - but it also suggests the artist is observing this scene from a distance. This concept of the artist as an outsider is also a recurring theme in Hennessy’s oeuvre. The detail in the rock in the middle ground is a preoccupation seen in numerous earlier works also, among them Rebuilding of Monte Cassino (1951) and Cliffs of Étretat (1962), while equestrian pursuits such as herding, trekking or racing also featured regularly as subjects. An almost identical pair of riders to those in the present painting feature as a detail in the distance in a contemporary oil on canvas (63 by 85cm) titled Mare and Foal, 1972. 1 That picture, which could be considered a companion piece to the present work, was shown at the RHA in 1972 and was later illustrated (page 114) in the exhibition catalogue for the major retrospective Patrick Hennessy De Profundis held at the Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin in 2016. Figures on Horseback was one of 25 works exhibited by Hennessy in a solo show at the Hendriks Gallery from 9 November to 2 December 1972. The aforementioned Mare and Foal was also included in this show (no. 8, £500) as well as Ruin and Horsemen (no. 7, £500) which was later purchased by celebrated Irish Dramatist Brian Friel (1929-2015).2 Adelle Hughes August 2026 Footnotes: 1 This painting sold through Adams on 12 June 2019 as lot 23 and displayed the label of Guildhall Gallery, Chicago on reverse. 2 This painting later sold through Adams on 26 September 2018 as lot 23. €10,000-€15,000 (£8,550-£12,820 approx.) Click here for more images and to bid on this lot75