NOBEL LAUREATE, parliamentarian and architect of the Good Friday Agreement has been honoured with the unveiling of a bust in his likeness at the Irish Embassy in London.
Hume passed away in August 2020 and is widely regarded as one of the most important figures in the recent political history of Ireland.
The bronze portrait bust by Dublin-based sculptor Elizabeth O'Kane was unveiled by John Hume JR yesterday, Wednesday 2 February, at a small event attended by MPs, Lords, members of the Hume family and representatives from the John and Pat Hume Foundation.
Speaking at the event, Ambassador Adrian O’Neill said Hume's achievements as a peacemaker were unique.
"John Hume is rightly remembered and honoured as a key architect of the peace process," he said.
"His achievements as a peacemaker were uniquely honoured by being the only person in history to win the Nobel peace prize, the Gandhi peace prize and the Martin Luther King award.
"In a nationwide poll in 2010, he was voted the greatest Irish person in history, a recognition of the gratitude, respect and affection for him across the island of Ireland – a feeling we rightly honour today with the installation of his bust in the Irish Embassy in London.
"From John’s early work with the credit union through the civil rights and political struggles his essential message never changed - in his own words, ‘leaving the past behind us and building a new future together’.”
Sculptor Elizabeth O'Kane has a twenty year career which includes exhibitions at the Royal Ulster Academy and the Royal Hibernian Academy of Art.
She is a member of The Art Students League of New York, the Water Colour Society of Ireland and the Ulster Watercolour Society.
Elizabeth’s work can be found in various public and private collections, including the National Library of Ireland, The National Concert Hall, University of Limerick, University College Dublin and Shannon Airport.
