The Hugh Lane gallery is housed in a neoclassical building built 1765 and once home of the first Earl of Charlemont. The collection’s most famous works are those contained in a bequest by Hugh Lane (1875-1915), renowned collector and art dealer, from whom the gallery gains its namesake. Following Lane’s death upon the Lusitania in 1915, 39 works were left to the gallery, though only after several years of dispute over details of Lane’s will. The collection consists of works by Impressionist masters as well as modern Irish works. In 2006, additional gallery space was added. This essay will focus on the works of Harry Clarke, displayed in the Stained Glass Room of the gallery.
