Nuala Holloway
Encyclopedia
Nuala Holloway is an artist and academic and a former Miss Ireland
, Irish
actress and model
.
Holloway was born in Moate
, County Westmeath
, Ireland
. An Irish
speaker, she received a BA
from University College Dublin
in modern and mediaeval Irish in 2004. She also received a BA
in history of art
, Italian
and English
from University College Dublin
. In 2005, she completed her higher diploma in education as well as a qualification in teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL).
at the Miss International Beauty Pageant in Okinawa, Japan
. She is currently the only woman from Co. Westmeath to become Miss Ireland
. (Wife of Luke Kelly
)
In 1978, Holloway appeared in The First Great Train Robbery
with Sean Connery
. She also worked as a double for actress Lesley-Anne Down
. She went onto to star in other projects including "The Flame Is Love", "The Year Of The French", "The Death of our Angels" and "Tailor Made".
She acted with Gabriel Byrne
on Bracken and Pierce Brosnan
on Manions of America
. She also appeared in Silver Apples of The Moon
, Anois is Arís and The Live Mike
, (playing Sr. Concepta with Dermot Morgan
).
Her stage acting career has included performances such as Sauce for The Goose (with RTÉ Players, Gaiety Theatre, Dublin), Meeting of the Ladies Club, The Importance of Being Earnest
, Living Quarters (By Brian Friel
), The Love Of The Nightingale (By Timberlake Wertenbacher - played the part of ‘The Queen’ at Players Theatre, Trinity College, Dublin), The Death of Cuchalainn (By W.B. Yeats - played lead part at the North American Theatre Festival, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
, U.S.A.)
, journalist and author John Waters (columnist)
, Elvis Presley
and golfers Pádraig Harrington
and Seve Ballesteros, asd well as maritime, wildlife and scenery paintings.
Following secondary school, Holloway studied at the Crawford College of Art, Cork. Her studies were abandoned when she was encouraged to become a model. However, her interest in painting was rekindled later on. She studied under Kay Doyle A.N.C.A., President of the Watercolour Society of Ireland.
In November 1997, Holloway's painting "Coming Out of the wood - Seve Ballesteros" was chosen from 300 entries for the Dun Laoghaire
/ Rathdown Open Exhibition of 30 artists.
In April 1998, two of her paintings were chosen for the Dun Laoghaire
exhibition - "Asgard II" and "Dun Laoghaire Harbour". This work was singled out for special mention by Peter Murray, Administrator of the Crawford Gallery, Cork. His comment was "An Artist of exceptional talent". Since then Ms. Holloway has completed a number of commissions and her work is now in private collections in Ireland, Britain and America.
In August 2006, she co-exhibited a selection of her art work with the poetry of writer, poet and Joycean scholar Leo Daly in Mullingar
, Co. Westmeath.
In September 2006, Holloway returned to her home town for her first solo exhibition, "Inspirations" which was opened by writer and artist Don Conroy
and Vera Hughes, a local historian. This was followed by an invitation to exhibit her work in Arklow
, Co. Wicklow in the summer of 2007.
In December 2007, her first solo Dublin exhibition took place at Airfield House, Dundrum. The exhibition, titled "Reflections", was opened by Senator Eoghan Harris
who highlighted Ms. Holloway's ability to draw, which he finds an important skill in an artist. He also referred to the former Miss Ireland and model as "the Nigella Lawson of Irish artists", referring to the force and energy in her work, and the glamour of the artist herself.
In November, 2008 Holloway held an art exhibition with another former Miss Ireland
Jakki Moore in Dun Laoghaire. The exhibition titled, 'The Magical World of Maritime' was a celebration of coral. The exhibition was held in aid of the Chernobyl Children's Charity.
For the first official state visit to Ireland by President Barack Obama
, The American Embassy in Dublin accepted an oil painting titled 'Faimine Ship - Jeanie Johnston' by Nuala Holloway to be presented to the President.
Miss Ireland
Miss Ireland is a national beauty pageant held in the Republic of Ireland each year, to celebrate the country's most beautiful women. Winners of the contest represent Ireland at the Miss World pageant. Other winners, including Roberta Brown and Siobhan McClaffey have also been delegates at rival...
, Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
actress and model
Model (person)
A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....
.
Holloway was born in Moate
Moate
Moate is a town in County Westmeath, Ireland.The name An Móta is derived from the term motte-and-bailey as the Normans built an example of this type of fortification here. The earthwork is still visible behind the buildings on the main street....
, County Westmeath
County Westmeath
-Economy:Westmeath has a strong agricultural economy. Initially, development occurred around the major market centres of Mullingar, Moate, and Kinnegad. Athlone developed due to its military significance, and its strategic location on the main Dublin–Galway route across the River Shannon. Mullingar...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. An Irish
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
speaker, she received a BA
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
from University College Dublin
University College Dublin
University College Dublin ) - formally known as University College Dublin - National University of Ireland, Dublin is the Republic of Ireland's largest, and Ireland's second largest, university, with over 1,300 faculty and 17,000 students...
in modern and mediaeval Irish in 2004. She also received a BA
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in history of art
History of art
The History of art refers to visual art which may be defined as any activity or product made by humans in a visual form for aesthetical or communicative purposes, expressing ideas, emotions or, in general, a worldview...
, Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
and English
English studies
English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language , English linguistics English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language (including literatures from the U.K., U.S.,...
from University College Dublin
University College Dublin
University College Dublin ) - formally known as University College Dublin - National University of Ireland, Dublin is the Republic of Ireland's largest, and Ireland's second largest, university, with over 1,300 faculty and 17,000 students...
. In 2005, she completed her higher diploma in education as well as a qualification in teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL).
Career as a Model
Shortly after completing secondary school Holloway became a fashion and photographic model. She gained national praise and attention in the late 1970s and 1980s for her work. She appeared in magazines and newspapers, both in Ireland and abroad. In 1975, after winning the Miss Westmeath competition, she represented her country as Miss IrelandMiss Ireland
Miss Ireland is a national beauty pageant held in the Republic of Ireland each year, to celebrate the country's most beautiful women. Winners of the contest represent Ireland at the Miss World pageant. Other winners, including Roberta Brown and Siobhan McClaffey have also been delegates at rival...
at the Miss International Beauty Pageant in Okinawa, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. She is currently the only woman from Co. Westmeath to become Miss Ireland
Miss Ireland
Miss Ireland is a national beauty pageant held in the Republic of Ireland each year, to celebrate the country's most beautiful women. Winners of the contest represent Ireland at the Miss World pageant. Other winners, including Roberta Brown and Siobhan McClaffey have also been delegates at rival...
Career as an Actress
Throughout her modelling career, Nuala Holloway became an actress and appeared in films, stage plays, TV dramas and commercials. She is a trained actress, having performed in various theatres including The Focus in Dublin, and with actress Deirdre O'ConnellDeirdre O'Connell
Eleanore Deirdre O'Connell was an Irish actress, singer, and theatre director who founded Dublin's Focus Theatre.-Biography:...
. (Wife of Luke Kelly
Luke Kelly
Luke Kelly was an Irish singer and folk musician from Dublin, Ireland, notable as a founding member of the band The Dubliners.-Early life:...
)
In 1978, Holloway appeared in The First Great Train Robbery
The First Great Train Robbery
The First Great Train Robbery — known in the U.S. as The Great Train Robbery — is a 1979 film directed by Michael Crichton, who also wrote the screenplay based on his novel The Great Train Robbery...
with Sean Connery
Sean Connery
Sir Thomas Sean Connery , better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930), better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy...
. She also worked as a double for actress Lesley-Anne Down
Lesley-Anne Down
Lesley-Anne Down is a British film and television actress, former model and singer.Down achieved fame as Georgina Worsley in the ITV drama series Upstairs, Downstairs...
. She went onto to star in other projects including "The Flame Is Love", "The Year Of The French", "The Death of our Angels" and "Tailor Made".
She acted with Gabriel Byrne
Gabriel Byrne
Gabriel James Byrne is an Irish actor, film director, film producer, writer, cultural ambassador and audiobook narrator. His acting career began in the Focus Theatre before he joined Londo's Royal Court Theatre in 1979. Byrne's screen debut came in the Irish soap opera The Riordans and the...
on Bracken and Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...
on Manions of America
Manions of America
Manions of America is a 6 hour mini-series for American television made in 1981. The subject of the series were Irish immigrants to the United States during the Great Famine of the mid-19th century. It was the first American role for actor Pierce Brosnan, co-starring Kate Mulgrew, David Soul and...
. She also appeared in Silver Apples of The Moon
Morton Subotnick
Morton Subotnick is an American composer of electronic music, best known for his Silver Apples of the Moon, the first electronic work commissioned by a record company, Nonesuch...
, Anois is Arís and The Live Mike
The Live Mike
The Live Mike was an Irish comedy variety and chat show presented by Mike Murphy. It was first broadcast on RTÉ 1 on 9 November 1979. The programme featured a candid camera piece by Murphy himself, parody songs and comedy sketches by Adele King, Dermot Morgan and Fran Dempsey, as well as a serious...
, (playing Sr. Concepta with Dermot Morgan
Dermot Morgan
Dermot John Morgan was an Irish comedian, actor and former schoolteacher, who achieved international renown for his roles as Father Ted Crilly in the Channel 4 sitcom Father Ted and a strip club MC in Taffin....
).
Her stage acting career has included performances such as Sauce for The Goose (with RTÉ Players, Gaiety Theatre, Dublin), Meeting of the Ladies Club, The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at St. James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious personae in order to escape burdensome social obligations...
, Living Quarters (By Brian Friel
Brian Friel
Brian Friel is an Irish dramatist, author and director of the Field Day Theatre Company. He is considered to be the greatest living English-language dramatist, hailed by the English-speaking world as an "Irish Chekhov" and "the universally accented voice of Ireland"...
), The Love Of The Nightingale (By Timberlake Wertenbacher - played the part of ‘The Queen’ at Players Theatre, Trinity College, Dublin), The Death of Cuchalainn (By W.B. Yeats - played lead part at the North American Theatre Festival, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
, U.S.A.)
Career as an Artist
Nuala Holloway uses oils, watercolours, pastels and pencil. Her works include portraits of Irish President Mary McAleeseMary McAleese
Mary Patricia McAleese served as the eighth President of Ireland from 1997 to 2011. She was the second female president and was first elected in 1997 succeeding Mary Robinson, making McAleese the world's first woman to succeed another as president. She was re-elected unopposed for a second term in...
, journalist and author John Waters (columnist)
John Waters (columnist)
John Waters is a columnist with The Irish Times and a former editor of Magill magazine. His career began in 1981 with the Irish political-music magazine Hot Press. He went on to write for the Sunday Tribune and later edited In Dublin magazine and Magill...
, Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
and golfers Pádraig Harrington
Padraig Harrington
Pádraig P. Harrington is an Irish professional golfer who plays on The European Tour and The PGA Tour. He has won three major championships: The Open Championship in 2007 and 2008 and the PGA Championship, also in 2008.-Background:...
and Seve Ballesteros, asd well as maritime, wildlife and scenery paintings.
Following secondary school, Holloway studied at the Crawford College of Art, Cork. Her studies were abandoned when she was encouraged to become a model. However, her interest in painting was rekindled later on. She studied under Kay Doyle A.N.C.A., President of the Watercolour Society of Ireland.
In November 1997, Holloway's painting "Coming Out of the wood - Seve Ballesteros" was chosen from 300 entries for the Dun Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire or Dún Laoire , sometimes anglicised as "Dunleary" , is a suburban seaside town in County Dublin, Ireland, about twelve kilometres south of Dublin city centre. It is the county town of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County and a major port of entry from Great Britain...
/ Rathdown Open Exhibition of 30 artists.
In April 1998, two of her paintings were chosen for the Dun Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire or Dún Laoire , sometimes anglicised as "Dunleary" , is a suburban seaside town in County Dublin, Ireland, about twelve kilometres south of Dublin city centre. It is the county town of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County and a major port of entry from Great Britain...
exhibition - "Asgard II" and "Dun Laoghaire Harbour". This work was singled out for special mention by Peter Murray, Administrator of the Crawford Gallery, Cork. His comment was "An Artist of exceptional talent". Since then Ms. Holloway has completed a number of commissions and her work is now in private collections in Ireland, Britain and America.
In August 2006, she co-exhibited a selection of her art work with the poetry of writer, poet and Joycean scholar Leo Daly in Mullingar
Mullingar
Mullingar is the county town of County Westmeath in Ireland. The Counties of Meath and Westmeath Act of 1542, proclaimed Westmeath a county, separating it from Meath. Mullingar became the administrative centre for County Westmeath...
, Co. Westmeath.
In September 2006, Holloway returned to her home town for her first solo exhibition, "Inspirations" which was opened by writer and artist Don Conroy
Don Conroy
Don Conroy is an Irish children's author, artist, conservationist and television personality. His artistic and literary work centres around a wildlife theme. "Uncle Don", as he affectionately known, is heavily involved in wildlife conservation work in Ireland and has made regular appearances on The...
and Vera Hughes, a local historian. This was followed by an invitation to exhibit her work in Arklow
Arklow
Arklow , also known as Inbhear Dé from the Avonmore river's older name Abhainn Dé, is a historic town located in County Wicklow on the east coast of Ireland. Founded by the Vikings in the ninth century, Arklow was the site of one of the bloodiest battles of the 1798 rebellion...
, Co. Wicklow in the summer of 2007.
In December 2007, her first solo Dublin exhibition took place at Airfield House, Dundrum. The exhibition, titled "Reflections", was opened by Senator Eoghan Harris
Eoghan Harris
Eoghan Harris is an Irish journalist, fiction writer, director, columnist and politician. He currently writes for the Sunday Independent. He was a member of Seanad Éireann from 2007–11, having been nominated by the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern....
who highlighted Ms. Holloway's ability to draw, which he finds an important skill in an artist. He also referred to the former Miss Ireland and model as "the Nigella Lawson of Irish artists", referring to the force and energy in her work, and the glamour of the artist herself.
In November, 2008 Holloway held an art exhibition with another former Miss Ireland
Miss Ireland
Miss Ireland is a national beauty pageant held in the Republic of Ireland each year, to celebrate the country's most beautiful women. Winners of the contest represent Ireland at the Miss World pageant. Other winners, including Roberta Brown and Siobhan McClaffey have also been delegates at rival...
Jakki Moore in Dun Laoghaire. The exhibition titled, 'The Magical World of Maritime' was a celebration of coral. The exhibition was held in aid of the Chernobyl Children's Charity.
For the first official state visit to Ireland by President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
, The American Embassy in Dublin accepted an oil painting titled 'Faimine Ship - Jeanie Johnston' by Nuala Holloway to be presented to the President.