Pimms and white wine were the evening's refreshments during the launch of the Summer Exhibition at Jorgensen Fine Art. Unfortunately, the weather didn't quite match this breezy summer mood and ominous grey clouds gathered overhead. Inside, the gallery hosted to a cluster of artists, sculptors and well-known art collectors, with a wide range on display, including work by Roderic O'Conor, Grace Henry and Mary Swanzy. A large cream-and-black Louis le Brocquy tapestry caught many an eye. Art connoisseur James Dudley of A&L Goodbody admired the work for a few minutes. A le Brocquy enthusiast - he has a commissioned tapestry hanging in his drawing room - Dudley complained of running out of space at home for more art.
Many of the gallery's artists were there, including Carmel Mooney, Fiona Smith Darragh, Kevin McNamara and Patrick Pye, accompanied by his wife, Noreen. A new face at the gallery, sculptor Elizabeth O'Kane - whose work appeared sporadically throughout the gallery - was also there.
An avid art enthusiast, the Knight of Glin, Desmond Fitzgerald, admired many of the works on display. Also doing the rounds were Campbell Bruce, chairman of the Contemporary Irish Art Society; his artist wife Jacqui Stanley; Kevin Kelly, publisher of Image magazine, and his wife Rose. It was a nostalgic evening for Catherine Giltrap of Jorgensen Fine Art, as it was her last exhibition at the gallery before she moves to the fashionable city of Milan. S∅le Connaughton-Deely will be stepping into Giltrap's shoes.