Women on Walls at RCSI
On 5th March 2019, RCSI, Accenture and Business to Arts unveiled a series of new portraits of historical female leaders in healthcare at RCSI. Women on Walls at RCSI in partnership with Accenture recognises the pioneering achievements of a group of eight extraordinary women and aims to enhance the visibility of historical female leaders in healthcare to inspire future generations.
The portraits were unveiled by Minister for Higher Education Mary Mitchell O’Connor TD and RCSI President Mr Kenneth Mealy. They now hang in the Board Room of RCSI’s historic building on St. Stephen’s Green.
In March 2018, artists were invited to submit a proposal to Business to Arts, project managers of the initiative. A selection committee identified six artists who were commissioned to paints the portraits. The group of artists have worked with RCSI archivists to research their subjects and complete the portraits.
The following artists have completed their commissions, creating a series of eight individual portraits:
| Commissioned Artist | Subject |
| Benita Stoney | Dr Margaret (Pearl) Dunlevy (1909 – 2002) |
| Catherine Creaney | Dr Barbara Maive Stokes (1922 – 2009) |
| Enda Griffin | Sr Dr Maura Lynch (1938 – 2017) |
| Mick O’Dea | Dr Emily Winifred Dickson (1866 – 1944) |
| Mick O’Dea | Dr Mary Somerville Parker Strangman (1872 – 1943) |
| Molly Judd | Dr Victoria Coffey (1911 – 1999) |
| Molly Judd | Dr Mary Josephine Hannan (1859 – 1936) |
| William Nathans | Dean Mary Frances Crowley (1906 – 1990) |
A Women on Walls podcast series was commissioned alongside the project. The eight-part series celebrates the lives of these eight Irish women who forged careers in healthcare during a time in Ireland when women were expected to stay at home. The first episode features the impact that Dr Barbara Maive Stokes, a paediatrician and pioneering disability campaigner, had on Ireland as a tireless advocate for people with intellectual disabilities. Women on Walls is available for download from Apple, Google and Spotify podcasts.
RCSI is committed to promoting gender equality among staff and students for the advancement of the College’s mission to educate, nurture and discover for the benefit of human health. RCSI has been awarded Athena SWAN Bronze accreditation for positive gender practice in higher education.
Women on Walls is a campaign that seeks to make women leaders visible through a series of commissioned portraits that will create a lasting cultural legacy for Ireland. Accenture’s Women on Walls began in 2016 with the Royal Irish Academy which recognised the achievements of leading female academics and to inspire future generations.
You can read more about Women on Walls at RCSI in partnership with Accenture by visiting accenture.com/womenonwalls and women.rcsi.com.
For all queries relating to this campaign please contact: womenonwalls@businesstoarts.ie