By Patrick Markey
A County Down sculptor who tried to show his work in New York City has been refused entry into the United States by the State Department because he was imprisoned in Northern Ireland during the 1980s.
Friends and family of Raymond Watson said they plan to appeal the decision refusing the Newry artist into New York for his first overseas show. Watson was scheduled to appear with his innate wooden sculptures at Manhattan’s Irish Arts Center two months ago. Organizers put on the show without him.
A former blanket protester who had been imprisoned in the Maze, Watson was turned away by immigration officials at Shannon Airport as he tried to make his way to the US for the show’s July opening.
Citing a 15-year-old block on his entering the United States, immigration officials told Watson contact the U.S. consulate. Last week, Watson was officially refused entry in a State Department letter sent to his family, according to his brother-in-law Sean Quinn.
"He’s extremely disappointed, but he’s not losing heart," Quinn said. "But the bottom line is that he’s not getting in."
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Because of his record, immigration officials told Watson he would require a special visa waiver from U.S. authorities in Belfast. In 1994, Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams bypassed a similar block on his entry to visit the United States on a special waiver.
Officials from the offices of New York Reps. Ben Gilman and Pete King unsuccessfully lobbied the State Department to allow Watson entry.
For the former prisoner, the New York show should have opened a new chapter in his artistic career. After completing a degree and a master’s degree in media studies, Watson recently returned to full-time woodwork.
The New York exhibition showed about 23 pieces that range from busts to weighty bog oak sculptures. Much of his work is inspired by Irish and Greek mythology and poetry.
At the Manhattan show and the closing exhibition in Middletown, N.Y., Watson’s work proved popular. He sold more than half of the pieces and commissioned several new sculptures.
Family members said the artist is working on a new show in Ireland and hoping to visit the U.S. next year.