Armagh’s All-Ireland winning manager Kieran McGeeney is captured lifting aloft the Sam Maguire Cup in artist Lorcan Vallely’s latest painting.
A fervent Armagh supporter - whose grandfather, John Vallely, was manager of the Armagh team in 1953 when they reached the All-Ireland final - Lorcan felt compelled to capture the county’s historic 2024 win on canvas.
“I’ve been following the team all year and been to all the matches. The whole town was going mad, so I wanted to commemorate it in a painting,” he says enthusiastically.
It’s not the first time he has captured McGeeney on canvas. Ten years ago he was commissioned by one of the Armagh team sponsors to capture the Armagh manager during his playing days back in 2002.
“In winning the All-Ireland he had reached the goal and I was trying to sum up that sense of achievement,” says Lorcan, who captured the emotion and joy in McGeeney’s face, as well as the intricate detail of the Sam Maguire Cup.
“I really enjoyed doing it. Capturing detail is what I like doing, and then adding the flashes of colour – in this, the orange - worked well.”
Limited edition signed and numbered prints of the painting are available through Lorcan’s website, though he is still vague about his plans for the original.
Awaiting framing, he plans to bring it to his forthcoming exhibition, Ceol ar Chanbhás, in Stornoway, in Scotland’s Isle of Lewis and then sell it – whether that be to the Armagh County team or to a superfan.
Son of the venerable piper and artist John B Vallely, Lorcan’s passion for art goes back to his primary school days at St Patrick’s, Armagh, where he sold his first drawing to the principal at the tender age of eight.
He went on to study art at Ulster University, Bath School of Art and Chelsea College of Art before specialising mainly in figurative and portrait art.
Did he feel a pressure following in his father’s footsteps?
“No. I think when you’re younger, you just make these decisions to follow your passions. Now I think our work is different enough to not be compared.”
Lorcan admits his style has evolved over the past 20 years.
“At art college I liked the work of South African artist William Kentridge, who used charcoal as his main medium.
“I started doing charcoal on paper, but when you build up layers upon layers, the paper wasn’t resilient and you were rubbing it away and making holes.
“So I moved to canvas to add depth. Then I wanted to add colour, so added the oil. It was a natural progression.”
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There is a nostalgic feel to much of his work – from children playing marbles and paper sailing boats to memories of Holy Communion and sipping milk from a glass bottle.
“I do sometimes use old photographs and newspaper cuttings or images from microfilm. I then like to bring more life, colour and character into them. Yet the graininess of the original photos translates well into charcoal,” he explains.
After working in England and Scotland, Lorcan returned to his native Armagh in 2014, sharing a studio in the city with his father.
“Dad is doing brilliant, he has a couple of exhibitions coming up – one in Armagh and one in Dublin and then a joint one with myself in Glasgow in January at the Celtic Connections Festival.”
The whole town was going mad, so I wanted to commemorate it in a painting
— Lorcan Vallely
Although their style and mediums differ, some of their themes are similar, especially capturing traditional musicians.
The Vallely family are synonymous with music in Co Armagh – having founded the renowned Armagh Pipers Club and William Kennedy Piping Festival.
His 22nd exhibition and his first in Scotland’s Western Isles presents a uniquely familiar perspective on the vitality of music in Irish society, and draws on the Vallely family’s immersive history in Irish culture and music.
Having received support from the Arts Council NI to assist with making the work for Ceol ar Chanbhás, Lorcan is delighted to present some new and recent work.
“The exhibition is being held in An Lanntair – a place which supports Gaelic language, culture and music, so fitted in with musicians as a theme.”
“The Armagh Pipers Club which my parents organised had a summer school in the 1970s and early 1980s in Benburb Priory.
“Some of those images are taken from that, maybe 40 years ago, as well as the Piping Festival we organise, which often have a lot of Scottish musicians coming over.”
One new image, The Dawning of The Day, captures two young musicians playing the tin whistle.
“The title refers to the name of one of the first tunes you would learn in the piping club and the first one I would have learnt myself.”
Lorcan recalls playing piano, tin whistle, clarinet and guitar in his youth, before concentrating on art. But he proudly adds that his own children Ríoghnach (12) and Seanai (10) “are the next generation coming on” and attend Armagh Pipers Club.
His brothers Cillian, Caoimhín and Niall Vallely still perform today – and the later two will be performing, alongside Ross Martin, in Stornoway on Saturday August 31.
In the past Lorcan has captured Irish cyclists Sean Kelly and Stephen Roache. Whilst he says he is “open to offers” for commissions for Ireland’s Olympics heroes, he particularly loves to capture running on canvas.
A member of Armagh Athletics Club, running also provides him with an opportunity to clear his head and think of new ideas.
“I organise a couple of mountain races. Some of the best ideas and inspiration for paintings come when you’re out on a long run on your own,” he enthuses.
Looking further ahead he might contemplate a return to the subject of the Israeli-Palestine conflict, which he first captured on canvas during a visit to the West Bank, organised by his university 20 years ago.
“We got to tour around the whole West Bank as observers, seeing the refugee camp. We even met President Yasser Arafat – who died later that same year.
“There were talks going on at the time and I thought there was hope. I can’t believe how much worse it is now,” reflects Lorcan, who last year started selling some of his prints in aid of the charity Medical Aid for Palestinians.
