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Born on 10th August,1923 in Ballinrubber, a small village about seven miles south of Castlebar, Ireland. He remembered himself as an ordinaboywho used to be called Sean or Johnny. Growing up in Ballinrubber and being surrounded by 5,000 years of culture, Brother Joseph developed a passion for the ancient Irish language, rich imaginative imagery and Irish folk songs. Attracted to the idea of teaching, Sean decided to join the De La Salle Brothers at the age of 14. His interest in art started when he was studying in College in 1940. He started teaching in 1943 at De La Salle College in Mallow and at the same time, attended art courses in a local technical school. In 1946, before he went over to St. Joseph’s Institution in Singapore to teach, he won the first prize for painting in the Festival of Limerick. This encouraged him to continue with his creative activity. He continued to paint even after he eventually took up and concentrated on the medium of sculpture. He took up sculpture seriously when he attended Columbia University. Brother Joseph’s career as a teacher and educator spanned over 56 years having served in :
St. Joseph’s Institution, Singapore:1946 to 1949 St. John’s Institution, Kuala Lumpur:1950 to 1951 St. Paul’s Institution, Seremban:1955 to 1956 St. Xavier’s Institution, Penang:1957 to 1960 Rome – second Novitiate:1960 to 1961 St. Xavier’s Institution, Penang:1961 to 1962 St. John’s Institution, Kuala Lumpur (as Director):1963 to 1967 St. Joseph’s Training College, Penang:1971 St. Patrick’s School, Singapore:1973 to 1975 St. Patrick’s School, Singapore (as Director):1975 to 1983 La Salle College of The Arts ( as Founder & President):1983 to 1997 President Emeritus & Consultancy Services:1997 to 2002 As an accomplished artist and sculptor, he had held no less than 12 exhibitions in Singapore, Dublin, Galway, Chicago and Memphis in the US. During the span of his life, he was honoured with numerous international medals and awards and was conferred an Honorary Doctor of Arts by RMIT, Australia; an Honorary LLD by the National University of Ireland; an Honorary Doctor of Management, Indonesia. Brother Joseph was made a Paul Harris Fellow of Rotary International in 1996. "Brother Joseph is best known as the founder of the LASALLE-SIA College of the Arts in1984. At that time support for the arts was in its infancy. Brother Joseph perservered and nursed the small art and design school, nested first in its St. Patrick's school campus, to the tertiary level institution it is today," said Mr. Liu Thai Ker, Chairman of the National Arts Council, Singapore. At a more developed stage, the government upgraded LASALLE-SIA College of the Arts to a degree awarding institution. For his effort, Bro. Joseph was bestowed the country's Meritorious Service Medal. A humble man he was as he stood before the President of Singapore in full view of the Republic’s leaders to receive this Award in November, 1997. Brother Joseph’s later confided that the only thought which flashed through his mind at that time was: “Why are they doing this to me? I have nothing more to show than what seemed to me to be my duty. Yet I was proud that Singapore had taken me to its heart and thanked me for doing my duty." In further honour of him, the Singapore Government has named the street outside the new La Salle College of the Arts, McNALLY STREET. On a personal note, I had a fair recollection of the man when he was teaching in St. Xavier’s Institution, Penang. I was a student at SXI then. I remembered his smiling Irish eyes and the characteristic “Bob Hope” nose. He always wore a smile and had kind words for everyone he met. The last time I met him was at the Yayasan De La Salle Launch Dinner on 7 th December, 2001 whence I was the Chairman of the Launch Committee. He was one of the VIP guests for the evening and we were seated at the same table together with Brother Alfonso Chee, a former teaching Brother in SXI and now residing in Hong Kong. Brother Joseph was attentive, humorous, and good company. One could always notice the slight Irish accent still in his gentle eloquence. He was extremely proud of the alumni for embarking on the Journey With a Dream on a joint mission with the Brothers to preserve the La Sallian Heritage. He expressed great joy at the opportunity of meeting up with some of his old students that night -among whom were Tan Sri Dato’ Kamaruzzaman Shariff (KL City Mayor at that point of time) and Dato’ Fong Weng Phak (a past deputy Governor of Bank Negara). Though Brother Joseph is no longer among us, his vigour and spirit will continue to live on through his paintings and sculptures. Brother Joe as he was fondly remembered had certainly left an indelible mark on all whose lives he had touched. May his soul rest in peace. Some of his sculptures Counsellor I Crucifixion La Salle Some of his paintings Ballintubber Abbey Autumn at the Catskills Summer III By Ng Soon Hong Acknowledgement:
· Photos and Brother Joseph’s early life by courtesy of Wind of the Spirit - published by the National Art Council and · Photos and Brother Joseph’s early life by courtesy of published by the National Art Council and the National Heritage Board of Singapore. · Brother Joseph’s career / appointments by courtesy of the La Salle Brothers
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