Portraits of great paintings: Irish authors take inspiration from the greats

Irish authors have taken pieces in the National Gallery as inspiration for prose and poetry, writes Peter Murray

ASSEMBLING a group of writers and asking them to respond to works of art in a museum is akin to herding cats, as both are inclined to dart off in any direction.

So praise is due to Janet McLean, curator at the National Gallery of Ireland, for organising the book, Lines of Vision, in which 56 writers respond, in verse and prose, to their favourite works of art in the National Gallery.