Haughey portrait to go under hammer

ONE of the last portraits painted of former Taoiseach Charles Haughey goes under the hammer in Dublin this week.

The 2004 oil painting, entitled ‘The General’ by contemporary artist Philip Moss has a guide price of €5,000 at the James Adam auction.

Mr Haughey died in June after a long illness and was given a state funeral.

“It’s an unusual, striking, portrait of an Irish political icon,” said associate director at James Adam, Jane Beattie.

Mr Moss, aged 45, who lives in Co Donegal, was unavailable for comment.

The portrait is Lot 45 of the Contemporary & Modern Art sale which is currently viewing and takes place on Tuesday at 6pm.

The 250 lots include 80 previously unseen items from the private collection of the late Gordon Lambert, a renowned art lover and former managing director of Jacob’s Biscuits.

Ms Beattie said: “The sale is an opportunity to get on the ladder of collecting. The variety is wide with paintings, prints, photographs, drawings, sculptures and ceramics all reasonably priced.”

Mr Lambert, an Irish senator in the late 1970s, donated more than 300 of his works which helped establish the Irish Museum of Modern Art in 1992.

James Adam chairman Brian Coyle was a friend of Mr Lambert and helped secure the collection for auction.