The Dublin Writers Museum today, Wednesday 14th December 2011, celebrated its 20th anniversary with the unveiling of two bronze portrait busts of the writers John B. Keane and Frank McCourt. The busts were presented as gifts to the Dublin Writers Museum by the sculptor, Séamus Connolly in conjunction with the Doorway Gallery. The busts were officially unveiled by Minister of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Jimmy Deenihan, T.D. at a reception held in the Museum’s Gallery of Writers. Speaking at the event, Robert Nicholson, curator of the Dublin Writers Museum since its inception in 1991 said: “By far the most interesting, exciting and unusual contributions to the Dublin Writers Museum collection have been due to the generosity of donors. It is therefore with great pleasure that we accept these gifts today from Séamus Connolly. When this museum was opened 20 years ago, John B. Keane’s career was still flourishing, and Frank McCourt had yet to become a household name. Now sadly both have passed on. We welcome this opportunity to acknowledge, through the presence of these portraits, their great contribution to Irish literature.” The busts will be on permanent display in the Dublin Writer’s Museum ‘Gallery of Writers’.
