O'Brien, Catherine
Catherine ‘Kitty’ O’Brien (1881–1963) was the second recruit to join An Túr Gloine, commencing her stained glass career in 1903. Throughout her career smaller scale, intimate windows rather than large multi-light windows seemed to suit her style better and these often have a simplicity and modesty in execution and ambition which seem most at home in country churches, something that Sarah Purser recognized when assigning windows. Most of her windows can be found in Church of Ireland churches of which she was a committed member. In time O’Brien eschewed her preference for lighter, mellow tones in favour of a brighter palette and by the early 1930s had adopted regular use of pulsating intense oranges, reds, blues and greens, sometimes evoking a charming folk art quality in her windows.
In 1940, on Purser’s retirement, O’Brien took over as manager of An Túr Gloine until its closure in January 1944. She then bought out the studio and its contents, and from 1954 she rented out space to fellow artist Patrick Pollen. A fire in 1958 destroyed the premises though she rebuilt the studio a year later, a testament to her tenacity and commitment.
Source: David Caron (ed.) Gazetteer of Irish Stained Glass (Irish Academic Press, 2021).
