The painter began his professional career as an artist after working 38 years as a bank manager in Ireland: “I took an early retirement in 2006, to follow my passion for painting and my interest in art”, Michael told The Portugal News.

According to the artist: “It’s never too late to start and to find something that you really have a passion for and that you enjoy, every day is a new day.”

Thus, he acquired a studio in the west of Ireland and started working on his painting, once he started selling some of his works, Michael got the encouragement to continue.

“I like to paint en plein air, which means standing out in the scenery, capturing the landscape, on location”, explained the artist, “I mostly paint in acrylics and oil, acrylics preferably, because it dries quickly, you can go over it and there’s no smell.”

Life on the ocean wave

In 2010, the Irish artist was presented with an opportunity to travel around the world with Cunard, a big cruise company based in Southampton, on their three cruise liners, Queen Mary II, Queen Victoria, and Queen Elizabeth. His role was an art lecturer, teaching passengers on board, watercolour painting.

“I did 16 cruises over the next seven years, to South America, South Africa, Australia, Russia, through the Suez Canal, all around the Mediterranean and it was a wonderful opportunity to see the world, to paint and to teach”, Michael added that he could always bring someone without charge, having three daughters and a son, the artist would bring his children to experience a bit of life at sea.


On the cruises, there could be around 4,000 people on board, of which 70 or 80 people would have an interest in art. Due to being on board for six weeks, passengers would have time to explore different interests, lectures, cookery demonstrations and art, among others. “I met people from all over the world on the cruises, my role was to teach art, and I enjoyed it”, said the painter.

By Royal appointment

In the year 2011, aboard the Queen Mary II, from India to Dubai, Michael caught the news that Queen Elizabeth II was going to pay a visit to Ireland, for the first time. “I knew that it was going to be historic, so I wrote a letter and posted it in Barcelona, to Buckingham Palace, requesting that I would be the artist for this visit.”

“Little did I think I would get a reply, but three days before Her Majesty arrived in May 2011, I got an email from the Department of Foreign Affairs in Dublin”, Michael stated the email informed him that he was going be the artist and of the 1,200 journalists that would be covering the visit.

“It was a big deal for me, I did 10 paintings of the visit”, he recalled.


After Her Majesty’s visit to Ireland was over, the artist decided to write to Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace, “I never thought I would get a reply. But I did. And she said that she would like to have one of my paintings.”

The following August, Michael and his family were invited to fly over to Heathrow Airport, where they were collected and driven to Buckingham Palace.

It was to deliver the first of three paintings that the Queen had in the Royal Collection. “The first painting ended up at the Palace back in 2011, the second in 2014 and the third in 2016, that was a gift to her Majesty for her 90th Birthday”, he said.


Michael Hanrahan is the only Irish artist with works in The Royal Collection.

The Irish painter has been visiting Portugal, the Algarve for a few years, he describes the conditions and the scenery, as enjoyable and beautiful. “I love painting in the Algarve, you don’t have to wrap up as much, the air is nice, it’s not too windy, you have to protect yourself from the sun, but the colours are magnificent, the flowers, the vibrancy, that’s what I love to capture.”


An exhibition by Dutch artist, Meinke Flessman, taking place in Portimão, on December 15, 2023, at 5pm, in celebration of the first anniversary of her gallery, will feature three of Michael Hanrahan’s paintings.

Michael expressed that “I try and transmit the message that I love what I do”, his goal is to create something that’s pleasant to look at, something that can be treasured, a reminder for years to come.

“A painting lasts a lifetime, it’s a great memory”, he concluded.

When asked about his future ambitions, Michael said that he wanted to continue painting, fine-tune and develop his skills, and get even better at it.

For more information on Michael Hanrahan’s work, you can visit www.michaelhanrahanartist.com.

Author

A journalist that’s always eager to learn about new things. With a passion for travel, adventure and writing about this diverse world of ours.

“Wisdom begins in wonder” -  Socrates

Kate Sreenarong