To describe Meagher’s life-journey as an odyssey is not an exaggeration. Like the legendary Odysseus, he was blown by the winds of war and fate to the four corners of the earth. Art engages the heart as well as the mind and is one of the most effective ways to engross an audience, pique their interest, and increase their awareness of history. As you spend time with Stephen Glueckert’s expressive oil pastel drawings you will feel the danger, energy, and emotion of Meagher’s odyssey.
Glueckert’s 24 colorful vignettes are filled with the celestial, earthly, and man-made symbols that governed Meagher’s life: from his privileged upbringing in Ireland to his leadership in the Young Irelander Rebellion, to impressment and escape, to his time as a commander in the Civil War, to finally his mysterious death. Though Meagher’s time in Montana was short, he remains a source of Irish pride in our state and his story continues to capture the imaginations of Montanans of all types.