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Royal Hibernian Academy (1916), before destroyed by fire outbreak during Easter Rising

Legacy

Following the death of James Brenan, there is no doubt that he led a life of success and importance to those he associated with. From the students he taught, to those he inspired with lace making, he impacted their lives and the art world at the time.

It is said that the preliminary classes of lace making and courses for lace design at the Crawford Municipal School of Art, led to the national awareness of lace making from 1886 to 1914 . “It was not until the promotional works of James Brenan in Cork and Dublin that design for lace became significant” . It is mentioned that his continuous promotion was the reason how “the new crafts were introduced in Dublin in the early years of the twentieth century” . Brenan’s workshops underwent success when class sizes increased. Overall, he played a huge role to the lacemaking industry in Ireland.

Following his retirement as headmaster, it can be quoted by Colonel G. T. Plunkett, that Brenan would “always be remembered for the great success which he had achieved and the very high place which the school had attained under his care among the art schools of the United Kingdom” .

In terms with his other art pieces, there are numerous times where it has been set up for auctions and exhibited. For example, the ‘Morning Prayer, Cottage Interior, County Cork, 1901’ was initially exhibited at the RHA in Dublin, 1902. It was then sold at a value of 9,500 euros .

The bidding prices of his works ranges from an estimate of 75 – 68,000 euros. This is subject to the size and materials used in the artwork . As of today, Brenan's works are still up for sale. For example, ‘Country Girl, 1861’ is currently up for auction at Gormley's Art Auctions. From the 29^th November 2022, it holds a value between 4,000-6,000 GBP, which can be converted to an estimate between 4,600 - 7,000 euros .