Dublin's Last Supper
- 2004


"In late 2003 John was approached by curator, Cliodhna Shaffrey and asked to come up with a proposal for a large public artwork to be installed in an outdoor space at a new development adjacent to The River Liffey in central Dublin.

The patron is developer Mick Wallace. Mick is well known for his very public anti-war stance. He also has an affection for all things Italian, particularly it’s wine and football. With this in mind, the response was the idea of a photographic re-interpretation of Leonarda da Vinci\'s "The Last Supper", with a Irish twist. What else!

Participants and locations for the picture were sourced in Dublin. Around 150 people were approached over several months if they\'d like to be in the picture. Very few people responded negatively and in the end he got a great group of people who worked very hard. John was also very lucky to work with accomplished photographer Jonathan Hession and photoshop specialist Rory McAllorum to put together this full-colour piece. Measuring 9.3 x 2.2 metres the installation was made in Belgium by a process of screen-printing and firing vitreous enamel onto nine connecting steel panels. '\Dublin\'s Last Supper\' was installed in July 2004 and remains there relatively unscathed! John has made reference to the \'Last Supper\' before in work as a kind of political talks metaphor. Positivity, momentum and all that. Different faith traditions are represented from the Irish frame and globally. It\'s strength lies in it\'s context as a large public artwork. It\'s surrounded by an Italian wine bar, cafe and resteraunt staffed almost exclusively by Italians. Immediately in front of it is an open al fresco eating area. "



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