Con Houlihan

Con Houlihan

Con Houlihan ~ Bronze
Sculptor ~ Unknown to me.

Con Houlihan was one of Ireland’s premier sportswriters. He was often described as ‘writer, journalist, philosopher, raconteur, Gaelic scholar and gentleman, he entertained his readers with some fantastic writing.

Con looks like a man with a thirst!

This sculpture was erected in the vestibule of The Bank Bar & Restaurant on College Green, in Dublin.

Bank Bar & Restaurant

In a brief eulogy at the end of the funeral service, Ray Hennessy, a friend of the journalist, described Con Houlihan (1925 – 2012) as:

A sculptor of language” who was “sensitive, compassionate, humourous, sometimes extremely funny, courteous, with perfect manners.”

He recalled a comment he made when unable to locate a book of poetry by Gerald Manley Hopkins after a cleaning lady had done her work, “you know, if that woman worked in Trinity College she’d throw out the Book of Kells”.

On another occasion, when Kerry unexpectedly beat Dublin in football he was asked how his friend Harriet, a dedicated Dublin supporter, was taking it, “Con replied ‘House private. No flowers’.”

There was no signature or sculptor’s name on the work and I have been unsuccessful in my search for further information.

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Old Oak

Old Oak

Old Oak ~ Bronze
Sculptor ~ Michael McWilliams

I found this piece last July, as I wandered through the Westbury Mall adjacent to the Westbury Hotel, just off Grafton Street in Dublin.

Michael McWilliams was born and educated in Dublin. He has been working as a professional artist for 30 years. He works from his studio on the foothills of the Dublin Mountains.

While his main interest is landscape painting, using a palette of tones and hues inspired by nature, he also works with bronze focusing mainly on the human form.

His works are in various corporate and private collections in Ireland and abroad.

The Onion Seller

The Onion Seller

The Onion Seller ~ Bronze
Sculptor ~ Séamus Murphy (1907-1975)

This is a monument to the women dealers in the Coal Quay, Cork City Open Market.

It was erected on February 27th 1986 and unveiled on February 28th 1986 by the Lord Mayor, Alderman Dan Wallace TD as a gift to the City of Cork to commemorate Cork 800 by Sunbeam Wolsey PLC.

Séamus Murphy was born at Greenhill, Burnfort, Mallow, Co Cork.

The Echo Boy

The Echo Boy

The Echo Boy ~ Bronze
Sculptor ~ Barry Moloney

This memorial is for the Echo Boys.

Poor and often homeless children who sold the newspaper The Evening Echo & on the streets in Cork City.

Evening Echo newspapers for sale

Barry Moloney (1935 – 1992) was principal of the Crawford School of Art. Unfortunately, I had little success in finding information about Barry Moloney.

Plaque on the wall behind the Echo Boy.

“The Echo Boy”
Commemorating
150 years of
The Cork Examiner
And 100 years of the
Evening Echo

The sculpture was
Unveiled 8 December 1991 by
Councillor Denis (Dino) Cregan
Lord Mayor of Cork

Barry Moloney
Sculptor

Relocated from Cook Street to
Saint Patrick’s Street 2004

Special offer today.

Today, like all the best Supermarkets I offer two for the price of one!

Theobald Wolfe Tone
1763-1798

Theobald Wolfe Tone ~ Bronze
Sculptor ~ Edward Delaney

As you approach St Stephen’s Green from the North East Corner A large sculpture of Theobald Wolfe Tone (1763 – 1798) stands guard today. Commonly known as Wolfe Tone, he was one of the founding members of the United Irishmen and is regarded as the father of Irish republicanism.

Cyclists resting at the feet of the father of Irish republicanism. I wonder what they are scheming?

When you walk round the stone pillars the other side tells a very different story:

Hungry Heart Famine memorial
~Edward Delaney

Hungry Heart Famine memorial ~ Bronze
Sculptor ~Edward Delaney

Hungry Heart: Edward Delaney‘s “Famine Memorial”

The two parts are all one sculpture and you can read more about them in this obituary for Edward Delaney from The Guardian in 2009

This eight-minute video on Dublin, Ireland’s St. Stephen’s Green and sculptor Edward Delaney’s “Famine Memorial” (1967) gives more information.

Back on August I featured the work of Edward Delaney, with his piece Four Angels.

PROTOGONOS

PROTOGONOS-1

PROTOGONOS ~ Bronze
Sculptor ~ Eamonn O’Doherty

This sculpture, in polished and patinated bronze, combines the symbol of medicine, the Rod of Aesculapius and its coiled serpents, with the laurel wreath of Hygieia, mythological goddess of health, and the double helix of the DNA.

PROTOGONOS-2

The work is dedicated to the countless men, women and children who have occupied the various institutions on this site during the last three hundred years, and celebrates the evolution of the modern St. James’s Hospital.

PROTOGONOS-4

Eamonn O’Doherty was born in Derry in 1939 and studied at University College Dublin, earning a degree in architecture. Later he became lecturer at the Department of Architecture at the Dublin Institute of Technology. In various capacities he also taught on the Dún Laoghaire College of Art and Design(Ireland), the Ecole Speciale d’Architecture in Paris (France), Harvard University (USA), University of Nebraska (USA) and the University of Jordan (Jordan)

He was responsible for some of the best-loved works of public art in the Republic – including the Quincentennial Sculpture in Galway’s Eyre Square, the James Connolly Memorial across from Dublin’s Liberty Hall and the Anna Livia fountain (aka ‘the floozie in the Jacuzzi), which was relocated from O’Connell Street to Croppy Acre Memorial Park near Heuston Station.

I have in the past featured Swans a work by Eamonn, alas, my old blog is down right now and I am unable to give you a working link.

The Three Fates

The Three Fates
St. Stephens Green, Dublin

The Three Fates ~ Bronze
Sculptor ~ Professor Josef Wackerle

The fountain is situated near the Leeson Street entrance to St. Stephens Green, Dublin, Ireland. It consists of a group of three bronze figures – representing the Three Fates, who weave and measure the thread of man’s destiny.

The Three Fates
St. Stephens Green, Dublin

The statue was a gift offered by Roman Herzog, President of the Federal Republic of Germany at the time.

The Three Fates (3)
St. Stephens Green, Dublin

The engraving on the plaque is in German, Irish and English:

German: In Dankbarkeit für die Hilfe, die das irische Volk deutschen Kindern nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg gewährte

Irish: Le buíochas as an gcabhair a thug muintir na hÉireann do pháistí Gearmánacha tar éis an Dara Cogadh Domhanda

English: With gratitude for the help given to German children by the Irish people after World War II.

Four Angels

Four Angels Fountain ~ Bronze
Sculptor ~ Edward Delaney

The Four Angels Fountain at College Green, Dublin, Ireland, is a secondary piece to the Davis Memorial. The statue of Davis, was unveiled on College Green, Dublin, in 1966.

Designed by Edward Delaney and known locally as the ‘peeing angels’, the fountain in memory of Thomas Davis depicts trumpeting Heralds of the Four Provinces proclaiming one of Davis’s best-known poems A Nation Again. The surrounding tablets illustrate harrowing scenes from the Great Famine of the 1840s. 

A Nation Once Again was first published in The Nation on 13 July 1844 and quickly became a rallying call for the growing Irish nationalist movement at that time.

This site was previously occupied by an equestrian statue of William III. That monument was blown up six times before being completely destroyed by a bomb in 1946. The wreck was taken to a corporation yard and the horses huge lead testicles were melted down and used to repair a pipe.

In the background is the Bank of Ireland formerly known as the Irish Parliament House, was the world’s first purpose-built two-chamber parliament house.

The fountain is a great favorite of students, who regularly ‘clean up’ the angels with the addition of dish washing liquid!

California, DNA and 8,427 panes of glass

All part of a morning spent at the National Botanic Gardens of Ireland.

National botanic gardens of Ireland (1)

In the distance you can see a recreation of a round tower to honour Daniel O’Connell, “the Liberator”, in Glasnevin Cemetry. It was built to the colossal height of 171 feet, and before you ask… I’ll not be climbing up for an aerial view of the dead centre of Dublin! 😛

Next door neighbours – Glasnevin Cemetery

The gardens are next door neighbours and a new entrance is being erected between the two.

The Taxodiaceae Sequeiadendron giganteum, native of California

The Taxodiaceae Sequeiadendron giganteum, native of California rather dwarfed the Curvilinear Glasshouse.

The Curvilinear Glasshouses

The curvilinear glasshouse was designed by Dublin ironmaster, Richard Turner in 1843.

Curved panes of glass

The work was completed and opened in 1849. It was extended in 1869.

Great Palm House

A major restoration began in 1992 and was completed with all 8,427 panes of glass in place, in time for the bicentenary of the founding of the gardens.

curved lines from the inside

After a dander along several pathways I came across this:

‘What is Life’ sculpture

‘What is Life’
Sculptor ~ Charles Jencks

‘What is Life’ was commissioned by Professors John Atkins of University College Cork and David McConnell of Trinity College Dublin as a public celebration of Science in Ireland and to specifically celebrate the 60th anniversary of the discovery of The Double Helix by Watson and his colleague Francis Crick in April 1953.

Side view

The Sculptor, Charles Jencks, designs landscapes and sculpture and writes on cosmogenic art.

The meaning in words

It represents for the first time in sculpture anywhere the many extraordinary new revelations made in the last 30 years about the novel roles of RNA in living organisms.

Finally a plaque I found on the steps in one of the glasshouses:

Inspiration

Ludwig Wittgenstein
(1889 – 1951)
Viennese Philosopher

Stayed in Dublin in the winter of 1948-1949
and liked to sit and write at these steps

If you go down to the woods today….

As you all know, I love sculpture. Barbara my wonderful niece with a magic eye for the camera, shared the wonders she discovered while walking in the woods near Farnham in Surrey, England. I So want to go there and experience the place for myself. I particularly loved the shoe trees. What is your favourite?

I am still having fun and being absolutely spoiled, but I may wait until I get home to blog about my adventures!

Day One

Al’s post about the strange garden he passes on his walks sometimes reminded me of a very strange sight we found a few years back when walking in the woods near Farnham in Surrey

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