The representations of poverty and nomadism in Irish and British art, 1760 – 1875

This dissertation examines the representation of Irish poverty and nomadism in Irish and British art during the period 1760 to 1875. It assesses how a diverse range of Irish and British artists’ visually interpreted Irish poverty and nomadism in paintings, drawings, illustrations and prints. This research analyses how the visual construction of the Irish poor and nomadic evolved in an attempt to sanitise, prettify, condone or absolve the poor. In a thematic manner, images are questioned within frameworks including benevolence and philanthropy, the urban and rural landscape, the domestic space and migration. The marginalised of society are the focus of this study including tinkers, Gypsies, landless labourers, the professional and ordinary beggar, itinerant musicians, pedlars and fortune-tellers. Artists acknowledged different strata within the poor, in particular where these nomads were categorised at a lower social level to the sedentary poor in both Irish and British society. The running theme throughout this thesis is artists’ perceptions of Irish poverty and nomadism, which were often based on personal agendas such as religion, family background or moral values. The co-dependency between Ireland and London, in the area of opportunities, markets and audience provides a comparative analysis of artworks. This study also reveals that images of Irish poverty and nomadism mirrored cultural and social changes in the period under review.