Born in Dublin, Alice Hanratty studied painting and printmaking at the National College of Art & Design in Dublin and the Hornsey College of Art in London. She worked and travelled in East Africa for several years before returning to Ireland.
Maura McGrath, Chair of the Arts Council, said: “Alice Hanratty was a visionary artist whose distinctive contribution to printmaking and painting enriched Ireland’s cultural landscape. Her unwavering dedication to her craft made her a source of inspiration to generations of artists. The Arts Council is deeply saddened by her loss and proud to have supported her throughout her remarkable career.”
Cecily Brennan, Chair of the Toscaireacht said: “On behalf of the members of Aosdána I express our sadness at the death of Alice Hanratty. Alice Hanratty was a superb printmaker excelling in multi-colour copper plate etching. She studied at the College of Art (later NCAD) and Hornsey College of Art, London. On her return to Ireland in the early 70’s she was offered teaching work at the College of Art. Highly critical of the teaching style and conditions at the time, she drew the ire of the authorities, a situation that led to her being one of a number of staff, members of the AT&GWU, who went on strike. An outspoken, passionate and committed teacher she was a stalwart believer in freedom, including freedom of expression and a very important influence on the lives of students at the time. I was fortunate that she offered to teach me etching and I spent many months working with her in her print studio in the basement of her house in Henrietta Street.
Alice participated in numerous International Biennales of Print since the 1970s. Aside from solo exhibitions at the Davis Gallery and Setanta Gallery, Dublin, and in galleries in Bangor, Co. Down and in Nairobi, Kenya, she has also shown in a number of major group shows including ‘The Delighted Eye’ (London, 1979), ‘Irish Artists’ (Chicago, 1980), IELA (1962-1982), and ‘Irish Women Artist From the Eighteenth Century to the Present Day’ (Dublin, 1987)”
In addition to showing work in major Irish group shows, Alice Hanratty represented Ireland at International Impact Exhibition, Kyoto, Japan (1989); Works on Paper Group Exhibition, the Armory, New York (1992); London Original Print Fair, Royal Academy of Arts, London (1995); International Biennale of Print, Beograd, Serbia (1998); and the “Estampe” International Print Exchange, Paris (2001).
Since the mid-1990s, she has frequently exhibited prints and drawings at the Royal Hibernian Academy, in both solo (2001, 02) and group shows (250 Years of Drawing, 1996; Spectrum, 1997; Millennium Exhibition, 1999; Selfportraits/Work, 2000).
Recent commissions include suites of drawings for the refurbishment of Landsdowne House, Dublin (2001) and for a new education centre in Galway by De Blacam & Meagher Architects (2002).
Her work is held in collections including Trinity College, Dublin; the Department of the Taoiseach; the Arts Councils of Ireland and Northern Ireland; and the state galleries of Turkey in Istanbul, and Italy in Catania.