A Portrait of the Artist Jim Fitzpatrick

Jim Fitzpatrick, the self-professed “eccentric voice that questions everything” is far more than a Celtic artist.

 

We know him for his beautiful artwork depicting heroes, gods and goddesses of Irish mythology and his album cover artwork for Thin Lizzy, Led Zepplin, Donovan and T Rex to name a few. He is also a writer, photographer, historian and a great man to talk. As I learned in a recent interview, the portrait of this artist is as complex and intricate as the Celtic art he creates.

 

Fitzpatrick grew up in Skerries, north of Dublin. The grandson of Thomas Fitzpatrick, the Victorian illustrator who produced drawings and cartoons for ‘Punch’ and  'The New York Gaelic American.' 

 

The death of a grand aunt promoted a cousin to gift Fitzpatrick some of his grandfather’s work.

 

“The proportions were exactly the same as mine. Big loud sort of baroque Victorian borders around a centrally placed religious theme. Now I find out that my grandmother or grandfather’s sister was doing Celtic artwork and I thought, that’s where I get it from! I thought I was original!”

 

When his parent's marriage dissolved, Fitzpatrick’s mother moved the family to County Clare. Fitzpatrick’s talent grew during many bouts of childhood illnesses that left him bedridden. A coughing fit resulted in an extended hospital stay and a diagnosis of T.B. Stories about heroes from Irish mythology and American comics helped to pass the time while he recovered.

 

Fitzpatrick naturally progressed into advertising and remained there for over seven years, “enjoying every minute of it,” and made an excellent living. At one point, he was making more than the president of Ireland.

 

An independent streak prevailed in the artist. Once described as “the most eloquent Irish poet to ever wield a paint brush,” it was not a paintbrush, but a process called silk-screening which brought Fitzpatrick into public view.

 

In 1968 Fitzpatrick self financed and produced over a thousand posters of Alberta Korda’s now famous photograph of Argentinean born Cuban revolutionary Che Guevara. Whilst working  as a barman in a hotel in Killkee, Co. Clare in 1962, Fitzpatrick met Che Guevara on an enforced stopover at Shannon airport.

 

“When he walked into the bar I recognized him immediately as I was a fervent admirer of Guevara.”

 

The two conversed and the meeting is engrained in Fitzpatrick’s memory. Guevara was surprised that anyone recognized him, Fitzpatrick recalls.

 

“Not only did I recognize him but I also recognized his bodyguards, the Cuban revolutionaries Willy and Benjamin, who later died in Bolivia by his side,” Fitzpatrick said.

Guevara explained his Irish background; his mother was a Lynch from Co. Cork. He did not know a great deal about Irish history except that Ireland was the first country to break free from the British Empire.

 

“I was more curious about the Irish-Argentinean connection”, Fitzpatrick remembers.  

 

To Che Guevara, the Irish-Argentinean communities were wealthy conservatives.  "Beggars on Horseback", Fitzpatrick declared. "Polo playing Gauchos", Che Guevara called them according to Fitzpatrick.

 

“I was so struck by him that years later I produced a very strange quasi-psychedelic drawing of him to commemorate his arrival in Bolivia,” FitzPatrick said.

 

The silk screening process Fitzpatrick implemented in his treatment of the original Korda photo captured something in the public psyche and catapulted Fitzpatrick’s artistic career. For Jim Fitzpatrick the Che Guevara image has now come to symbolize martyrdom, which he says, “is an unpopular word nowadays.”

 

In popular culture the Che image has appeared in one of The Black Eyed Peas music videos, comedian Ricky Gervais emulated the silk-screened pose for promotion of his comedy tour ‘Politics.’ More recently, American artist Shepherd Fairey, uses Fitzpatrick’s Che image to promote the ‘Progress’ image of Barack Obama. Fitzpatrick never copyrighted the original posters.

 

“A professor from Stanford, I think, overlapped the image of Obama and Che and compared them. The difference in the eyes, the elevated gaze,” Fitzpatrick said.

 

The image is not popular in every part of the world.

 

“It was banned in Poland last week and they can pull you off the streets in China if you wear a t-shirt with the image on it. For these people it has come to represent the old order," Fitzpatrick explained.

 

The Irish government is currently assisting Fitzpatrick to attain full copyright of the Che image. Currently he has copyright by default. Once the issue of copyright has been resolved, profits from the sale of the poster will go to charity.

 

Fitzpatrick vowed to draw and paint what he wanted to and left his lucrative career in advertising. It was work from his Celtia series and Thin Lizzy that kept him afloat.

 

The Celtia series, his best-known work, motivates continued interest in Celtic Mythology. Fitzpatrick’s childhood enthused the youth with visions from Irish mythology. His aunt would leave a bowl of milk out for the fairies every night.

 

“All these strange habits, at the age of 12 or 13, I was totally absorbed by them.”

 

The series was initially considered by Fitzpatrick to be done in Japanese Manga art style. It was in May of 1973 that a vision changed this decision. As described on the artist’s website, the vision is terrifying and negative. 

 

“Unfortunately it was my one and only vision,” he said.

 

From this vision the most intricate, bold and unique Irish artwork evolved.

 

The artwork in the Celtia series is influenced by the Book of Kells, the work of British artist Aubrey Beardsley, Czechoslovakian artist Alphonse Mucha, Austrian artist Gustav Klimpt, and Japanese artists Utagawa Kuniyoshi and Utagawa Hirosighe. The list displays Fitzpatrick’s awareness and respect for international artists.

 

The artist’s own personal favorites among the many beautiful images from Celtia are Morpheus the Druid, Diarmuid and Ghrainne and Conann and the Fianna.

 

 

Fitzpatrick hopes that the Celtia series has added to the growing interest in Irish Mythology. The goal when he set out was to make people interested in it.

 

 "It is rubbish,” he said, “to say that we are all one species. The Celtic race, people don’t understand how widespread they were.”

 

When asked about the relationship with Thin Lizzy front man, Phil Lynott, he calls him “Phillip” and said Lynott was his best friend. Both were abandoned by their fathers and raised in homes surrounded by women.

 

Fitzpatrick's distress during Lynott’s self-destructive phase displays how close the two had become. It was over a lunchtime drink with his ex-wife that Fitzpatrick learned his friend had died  

 

“The Philip that I remember to this day was full of life and energy; black, beautiful and charismatic; kind, gentle and generous.”

 

Jim Fitzpatrick still lives in Dublin by the sea. He has recently collaborated with Irish political activist artist Seamus Nolan on a political piece called ‘Pax Christi’ for the RHA Dublin ‘Futures 2009’ exhibit.

 

In the early part of 2010, Jim hopes to complete the third and final book in his trilogy of Irish Mythology. The working title is The Son of the Son.