The Power Family

Albert George Power did not work alone. He and his wife Agnes (née Kelly) had eight children, of whom at least four — three sons and a daughter — followed him into sculpture, working in and around his studio at Geraldine Street. His sons Albert Jr., Oliver, and James, and his daughter May, between them produced a substantial body of Irish public, ecclesiastical and commemorative sculpture across the twentieth century. This archive honours all of them.

1881–1945

Albert George Power RHA

Sculptor · Royal Hibernian Academician

The founder of the dynasty. Albert Power trained at the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art and the Royal College of Art, London, and became one of the foremost Irish sculptors of his generation. His death masks of Michael Collins, Arthur Griffith, and Cathal Brugha, his Pádraic Ó Conaire memorial in Galway, and his decorative work on the Gresham Hotel facade are among the defining sculptural works of the Irish revolutionary and early Free State periods. He married Agnes Kelly in 1903; they had eight children.

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d. 2009

James Power

Sculptor · Son of Albert G. Power

One of three sculptor sons, James Power produced an extensive body of monumental and ecclesiastical sculpture, including the Edward 'Ned' Daly and Peadar Kearney busts at Kilmainham Gaol and the Matt Talbot memorial in Dublin.

b. 1903

May Power

Sculptor & Artist · Daughter of Albert G. Power

May Power (born Mary Elizabeth), daughter of Albert, was a sculptor and artist who trained at the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art and modelled for the painter Patrick Tuohy. She was one of relatively few women working as professional sculptors in Ireland during this period.

b. 1913

Oliver Power

Sculptor · Son of Albert G. Power

Oliver Power, son of Albert, carved the limestone lettering on the Robert Emmet Bridge memorial (1938) — a direct father-and-son collaboration on one of Albert's most significant late public commissions. Oliver married Sheila Keating in 1939; they are Mark Freer's grandparents.

1912–1973

Albert Power Jr.

Sculptor · Son of Albert G. Power

The eldest son, Albert Jr. restored the statues and carvings of the Custom House, Dublin, single-handedly over many years, and made the death mask of the writer Máirtín Ó Cadhain. He collaborated with his father at Christ the King Church, Carndonagh.

A Family of Sculptors

Three of Albert and Agnes Power's sons, and one of their daughters, became sculptors — an unusual concentration of artistic talent within a single generation of one family. Albert Jr. worked alone for many years restoring the statues and carvings of Dublin's Custom House; Oliver carved the Emmet Bridge lettering directly with his father; James produced the Kilmainham Gaol portrait busts and the Matt Talbot memorial; May trained at the DMSA and modelled for Patrick Tuohy. This archive exists to ensure their contribution is not forgotten.

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This site was created by Mark Freer, great-grandson of Albert G. Power RHA and grandson of Oliver and Sheila Power. Get in touch →

Genealogy reconstructed from primary records — birth, marriage and death certificates and contemporary newspaper obituaries (1945, 1973, 2009, 2016) held in the family archive.