Memorial for artist to be unveiled in Emerald Isle

A memorial to Whanganui artist Edith Collier (1885-1964) will be unveiled on the other side of the world next month.

The memorial marks 100 years since Collier spent a summer sketching and painting in Bunmahon, Ireland.

Collier was born in Whanganui, attending Wanganui Girls' College and Wanganui Technical School to study art before heading overseas.

Senator Grace O'Sullivan will unveil the memorial on the site of Collier's studio on July 17.
Six of the Collier family are travelling to Bunmahon for the unveiling, which is part of a three-day gala weekend.

Collier lived in the village in 1914 and 1916, and the memorial marks her second stint there.
Nephew Gordon Collier said the family had retained close links with the village and Edith Collier's Bunmahon Heritage Society, which promotes the modernist painter's legacy in the village.

"It's a wonderful place to go because we all grew up with paintings of that village on our walls," Mr Collier said.

The gala weekend will include a tour of scenes painted by Collier.