Grace

The original artwork of Grace was created by Jim at the Weekly Art Class at Celtic Park. It was displayed to the public at the successful  Artful Codgers Exhibition in Coatbridge from March 30th until 10th June 2025. 

Rod Stewart recently recorded the song "Grace" which is sung by the Celtic support. The song tells the story of Grace Evelyn Gifford an Irish artist and a political cartoonist and activist. Grace married her fiancé Joseph Plunket in Kilmainham Gaol only a few hours before he was executed at dawn for his part in the 1916 Easter Rising, in 1923 Grace was imprisoned herself in Kilmainham Gaol for a period of 3 months. This was due to her political views. During her incarceration she used crayons to cover her cell walls with bright paintings, cartoons and the Kilmainham Madonna. Unfortunately, when the prison fell into disrepair the artwork was destroyed. If you visit Kilmainham Gaol today you can see a replica of the Kilmainham Madonna which was painted by Irish Artist Tom Ryan during the restoration of the Gaol. Grace never remarried and died alone in 1955.