Write a comment
On display in Newry and Mourne Museum are a series of six unique acrylic paintings created by Jasper Mc Kinney in response to the rediscovery, and subsequent restoration, of Bagenal’s Castle in the 1990s. Jasper Mc Kinney was born in Banbridge in 1961 and studied at Ulster Polytechnic, Brighton College of Art and the Slade School of Fine Art. The works on display at the Museum interpret the history of the museum building from the medieval Cistercian Abbey, which was located in the environs, to Bagenal’s Castle and then the Mc Cann’s Bakery era. McKinney also found inspiration in the map of Newry, drawn by Robert Lythe in the 1570s, and the floor plans of the Castle, which date from the same period, and incorporated these into the works.
Each of the works on display in the Museum reflects a different area of the Castle and warehouse building. The piece that interprets the ground floor contains the symbol for wheat. This reflects the building’s history as a bakery, and the theme of wheat is carried throughout all the works. It also shows an abbot’s mitre which refences the history of the Cistercian Abbey and ground floor plan of the Castle.
The painting that explores the first floor shows the stair tower, the latrine tower and the original fireplace used to make bread from the Bagenal’s Castle era. It also shows a baker’s hat and the date 1894, when the Victoria Bakery relocated from Hill Street to the site on Castle Street.
The second-floor work carries on the theme of wheat, displaying the ancient symbol for wheat. It also features the Yew Tree which is symbolic of Newry. The name 'Newry' is derived from 'Iubhair Cinn Tragh' (which translates as ‘the Yew tree at the head of the strand’). It is thought St. Patrick planted a yew tree along the Clanrye River in the 5th century. The piece also depicts the grave slab from the Museum thought to have originally been from a cemetery adjoining an earlier monastery at Newry prior to the foundation of the Cistercian Abbey in 1153. More recently, the stone was located on the wall of a shop in Castle Street and was known as the Promise Stone. In the 1960s the stone was moved to it’s current location in the former premises of the Victoria Bakery.
The painting that focuses on the attic features the name “Arthur Mc Cann” who was the founder of the Victoria Bakery as well as the year 1996 when Bagenal’s Castle was rediscovered. This piece also features an heraldic animal taken from a stone in the Museum that is believed to have been one of a pair used a label stops in a hood molding mounted above a window or doorway in the Cistercian Abbey. This stone also features a carved human head and this was the inspiration for a fifth painting which was inspired by this iconic piece of medieval sculpture.
Sir Nicholas Bagenal is displayed in sixth piece using the image from the late 16th century oil on canvas portrait of him which is on display in the Museum. This piece also includes imagery taken from the Robert Lythe map.
The six paintings by Jasper McKinney creatively interpret the history of Bagenal’s Castle and the associated medieval artefacts. They are an important part of the Museum’s art collection which reflects the heritage of the area.
The Museum is currently offering free tours of the exhibition galleries on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 2.00 pm. These must be booked in advance by calling our Education Officer at 0330 137 4422.
Newry and Mourne Museum is open Tuesday – Saturday 10.00 am – 4.30 pm. Please call 0330 137 4422 or email museums@nmandd.org for further information.
Please visit our website at www.visitmournemountains.co.uk
