A beautiful tribute painting of Christy Dignam by a Dublin artist has been sold to a new home after it went viral online.
Niall O'Loughlin created the touching artwork following an update about the singer's health. Niall is known for his impressive caricature work, but wanted to create a more reflective piece of artwork out of respect for the Aslan frontman.
Niall has created caricatures of Aslan in the past, including ones of Christy. He was delighted with the recent response to his more serious portrait, as drawing famous faces often proves challenging.
READ MORE: Christy Dignam says 'kind words' have given him 'boost' since palliative care announcement
Niall told Dublin Live: "I’m known for the caricatures but this was a portrait and I didn’t know how people would react. It's gotten way more views than anything else I've ever put up - I couldn't reply to all the comments, there were so many."
The painting has since been sold to a good home. Niall says that he wanted the artwork to be owned by someone who knew and appreciated Christy, rather than just someone following the online hype.
Christy is depicted wearing his trademark leather jacket, clasping a microphone in one hand. Niall says that he wanted to draw attention to several of the singer's features, including his smile and hands.
He adds: "I felt with Christy I had to pay attention to his hands because he’s very expressive and does gestures. My sons don’t know Christy that well because of their age, but they recognised him through the drawing as the man who gestures with his hands, from seeing him on TV."
Although the painting has found a treasured home, Niall still has prints of the original artwork that he intends to auction off. All proceeds will go towards a charitable fundraiser set up by a fan of the musical legend.
Niall previously created a touching caricature of Vicky Phelan and Charlie Bird on the summit of Croagh Patrick. The artwork was an instant hit ahead of the Climb with Charlie appeal launched in early 2022 and received praise from both Vicky and Charlie online.
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