Commissioned for St Joseph’s College, Garbally, Co. Galway, this 1941 limestone grouping of St Joseph and the Christ Child is a characteristic example of Power’s religious work for educational institutions. The college, run by the Diocese of Clonfert, sits near Ballinasloe in east Galway.
Power carved multiple versions of the St Joseph and Christ Child subject across his career. An earlier variant in marble (late 1920s) was made for the Convent of Divine Providence, Foxford, Co. Mayo. The subject allowed Power to combine figurative naturalism with the tender, accessible devotional quality that made his religious commissions so widely sought.