A Shared Legacy: Essays on Irish and Scottish Art and Visual Culture brings together for the first time a unique selection of new research by leading Irish, Scottish, English and North American scholars to explore the varying ways in which the visual can operate within the context of two countries with related experiences of lost statehood yet retained nationhood. Covering a span of three centuries, this skilfully-crafted book takes the discussion of Irish and Scottish art beyond the often isolationist approach adopted in the past, dealing directly with issues of nationality in a wider context. The authors identify national concerns through a range of themes: race, class, union and assimilation or nationalism and internationalism and while many of the essays focus on paintings, sculpture, prints and watercolours, others consider a wider notion of visual culture by investigating photography, magic lantern slides and the home arts of embroidery and textiles.
