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“The Quiet Girl” – my painting, the book and the film

The Quiet Girl Curzon Film

No sooner than I arrived in Donegal and made a start on two large paintings than Seamas and I came down with Covid 19.  Apparently the current wave has been mopping up many of the people who  had thus far avoided the horrible virus. I never gave up wearing my mask in shops but I still caught it. Darn! So I have spent most of the last two weeks sleeping and lying in bed trying to do very little, in the hope that my immune system will bounce back and my energy levels will return to normal.

Book Cover - Foster by Claire Keegan
Book Cover – Foster by Claire Keegan

 

I am also feeling faintly stupid but very delighted  because I only just realised that Claire Keegan’s novella “Foster”, is the basis for the film “The Quiet Girl”.  My oil painting “The Traditional House, Gola”  has been used for the cover of the reprint of “Foster”. Actually, never mind the covid, I nearly fell over when I made the connection.

Oil painting of Gola Donegal by Emma Cownie
My painting – The Traditional House, (Gola)

 

I must have seen these adverts on TG4 (the Irish language chanel) because I thought of this film by it’s Irish language title  “An Cailín Ciúin” – as just about all the dialogue is in Irish. I didn’t realise that it was the same story as “Foster”.

It’s story about a nine-year-old girl,  Cáit, who is sent to spend the summer with her aunt Eibhlín (Carrie Crowley) and her husband Seán, who live in the Rinn Gaeltacht, County Waterford. The film is directed and written by Colm Bairéad , based on Claire Keegan’s story “Foster”.  It has won a whole pile of International awards, rave reviews and has been breaking box office records in Ireland and UK. I am really excited and greatly honoured to be connected, even in a tenuous way, to such an amazing project!

I am now going back to bed, in the hope that I haven’t over done it.

The Quiet Girl Curzon Film
The Quiet Girl – Curzon Films

 

More about the film

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jun/12/the-quiet-girl-irish-language-film-box-office-ireland-uk-an-cailin-ciuin

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Cail%C3%ADn_Ci%C3%BAin

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/may/11/the-quiet-girl-review-beauty-and-pain-in-rural-ireland

https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/Foster-Audiobook/057137350X

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On the cover – Eugene Vesey

Eugene Vesey
I was delighted to give permission to Eugene Vesey, poet and author, to use my artwork on the back of his book “Opposite Worlds”.  In the story, the main character Frank spends his honeymoon with Mary on Gola island.
My painting,  “Up From the Pier, Gola” looks great on the back of this edition -You can get a print of my painting here https://www.artmajeur.com/…/12510206/up-from-the-pier
Eugene sent me two copies of the book, which I am half way through and enjoying a lot. See the book on Amazon here https://www.amazon.co.uk/Opposite-Worlds-Eugene-Vesey/dp/1461075874 and on Barnes and Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/opposite-worlds-eugene-vesey/1104007157
Back Cover of Eugene Vesey’s book with my painting on it.
Me in front of the study and large scale version of “Up from the Pier, Gola” in my old Swansea studio