Róisín Madigan O’Reilly

Róisín Madigan O'Reilly (Róisín Uí Mhadagáin Ní Raghallaigh) (21 January 190313 February 1974), was the youngest member of Cumann na mBan and a sound and radio pioneer.

Biography Róisín O'Reilly was born in Dublin on 21 January 1903 to E. O'Reilly, a lecturer in Irish Literature and E. Hessler, a German-born governess. Madigan O'Reilly spoke German, Irish and English as a child. She also spent time visiting her mother's family in Potsdam. The family were strong believers in an Irish Republic. Her father wrote both articles and poetry for the newspaper An Claidheamh Soluis. O'Reilly joined Cumann Na mBan when she was 13 becoming the youngest member. Her mother was also a member. She gave her first typewriter to Winifred Carney.

Madigan O'Reilly studied at the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art focusing on decorative lettering, calligraphy and illumination. She would create bricolage and collage art using elements of her father's words. Her work was noticed by the German publishing group Potsdam: Müller and Co. Verlag. Through them she saw the work of Kurt Schwitters which influenced her later projects, especially her translation into Irish of his work Ursonate in 1926.

She died in Dingle on 13 February 1974.

Works Os Ard PrimAUDial Language Performances Voweling the Heaviside Irisches Traumbuch von Róisín O’Reilly