Whyte’s, in association with Christie’s, offered works from The Ernie O’Malley Collection, highlighted by five paintings by Jack Butler Yeats. Comprised of 100 lots, also including early sketches by Yeats and work by the artists Mainie Jellett, Evie Hone, Louis le Brocquy, Colin Middleton and Norah McGuinness, the auction formed an anthology of Irish art from the early 1900s to the 1950s. Ernie O’Malley was a leading revolutionary an in Ireland from 1916-22 who went on to publish two books detailing his experiences. The sale and international exhibitions provided an opportunity to discover his private passion for art and the relationships he developed with artists he encountered in America and Ireland.
The collection grossed €5.5 million, the highest result for an art auction in Ireland, including record breaking realisations for several works.
