Public Art
Luke Kelly (2019)
This statue, unveiled by President Michael D Higgins is one of two statues unveiled in the City to mark the 35th anniversary of musician and activist Luke Kelly's death. Located on Sheriff Street, where Kelly was born, the statue was designed by portrait artist Vera Klute. The other statue is located on South King Street.
'Admiral Brown' (2006)
In 2006 this sculpture - which was commissioned by the Admiral Browne Society - was unveiled by Án Taoiseach, Mr. Bertie Ahearn TD to honour the Mayo born father of the Argentine navy. The bronze sculpture was cast in Argentina and is a replica of one that stands in Buenos Aires. It is located on Admiral Brown Way, off Sir John Rogerson's Quay, Docklands, Dublin 2.
'Arc Hive' (2003), by Rachel Joynt
'Arc Hive' was commissioned by Dublin City Council in 2003. The artwork is located in the foyer of Pearse Street Library. Three 1.1m X 1.1m hexagonal cast iron grids bedded into the entrance foyer house honey amber glass cobbles. Rachel Joynt has chosen the bee, honeycomb and its gathering and storing activities as an appropraite symbol for a library. The cobbles are embedded with Irish type face letters that appear like speckled powdered pollen. The lighting underneath creates a warm glow.
'Flow' (2008), by Martin Richman
This installation was commissioned by the Dublin Docklands Development Authority in 2008 to animate the Bord Gáis above Ground Installation (AGI), which is in fact a depressurisation installation for the distribution of gas within the North Lotts area in Docklands. Recalling the banded wrapping of the freight containers that would have been shipped into this part of the River Liffey - the reflective sequins creates a dance of light and pattern on the glazed surface of the structure. This installation especially comes to life after dark.
Martin Richman was educated at St. Martins School of Art in London. His work addresses issues concerning light, colour and space both in the private and public realms. As well as a strong studio practice and producing work for exhibitions and private houses, Martin Richman has done many public projects from stand-alone sculptures to collaborative works with architects and engineers. Richman is well known for the transformation of Tyseley Energy Waste Facility, Birmingham (1997) incollaboration with architect Ray Perry - the project received a RSA award.
'Freeflow' (2006), by Rachel Joynt
In 2006 Rachel Joynt was commissioned by the Dublin Docklands Development Authority to insert 'Freeflow' - an installation of 900 small internally lit glass cobbles in watery shades of green and blue, along the north quays for 1km stretching from Custom House Quay to North Wall. Rachel Joynt is an Irish sculptor who has created some prominent Irish public art. She graduated from the National College of Art and Design in Dublin in 1989 with a degree in sculpture. Her commissions include People's Island (1988) in which brass footprints and bird feet criss-cross a well-traversed pedestrian island near Dublin's O'Connell Bridge. She collaborated with Remco de Fouw to make Perpetual Motion (1995), a large sphere with road markings which stands on the Naas dual carriageway and Mothership (1999) a cast bronze and steel sea urchin positioned on the sea front in Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin.
'Harmony' (1998) by Sandra Bell
Commissioned by Dublin Corporation in 1998, this bronze sculpture is situated in the gardens of Pearse Square, off Pearse Street in the spot where a bandstand once stood. The bronze figure celebrates those past musical performances. Sandra Bell is a self-taught sculptor who uses the Lost Wax Method for bronze casting. Her work is sinuous, elegant, graceful, tactile and feminine. There are Celtic, classical and African influences in her work which is based on the human form. She abstracts the human form eliminating the detail, so that only the essential essence of the figure remains.
'James Connolly Memorial' (1996) by Eamonn O'Doherty
This sculpture was commissioned by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and is a memorial to Irish socialist hero James Connolly. One of the signatories of the Proclamation of the Irish Republic in 1916 - Connolly was executed by the British in the Easter Rising. The bronze sculpture is located in Beresford Place, opposite Liberty Hall. The sculptor - Eamonn O'Doherty is one of the best-known living Irish artists. He has created so many of Ireland's late 20th century public sculptures. His best known works is large scale public works including: 'Fauscailt', County Wexford (1998), 'Crann an Oir' (Tree of Gold) Central Bank Plaza Dublin (1991), and the 'Galway Hookers', Eyre Square, Galway (1984).
'Matt Talbot' (1988) by James Power
This sculpture was erected in 1988 - Dublin's millennium year. It is a memorial to Matt Talbot (1856 - 1925) who is an icon for Ireland's temperance movement. The sculptor - James Power - a native of Dublin was considered an excellent modeller in clay, plaster and wax and produced many superb portraits, death masks and genre pieces throughout his career. The sculpture is carved from granite and is located on Sir John Rogerson's Quay in Dublin's Docklands.
'NC Irish' (2006), by Vivienne Roche
Commissioned by the National College of Ireland, NC Iris was inspired by two flower forms - the lily and the Iris - which represent growth and optimism. The main material used is a specially designed stainless steel chain-mail which is lit from a series of recessed light in the ground - colour changes are achieved at night using a computer programmed at a remote source. The 14 metre sculpture is located in Mayor Square just outside the entrance to the college. Born in Cork, Vivienne studied at the Crawford College of Art and at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Vivienne Roche is a member of Aosdána and of the R.H.A. She was instrumental in the establishment of the National Sculpture Factory in Cork, and served as a member of the Arts Council from 1993 to 1998.
'The Linesman (1999), by Dony MacManus
This bronze sculpture, by Irish artist Dony MacManus, commemorates the tradition of docking in the area, which disappeared with the containerisation of shipping cargo. Located on City Quay, it was the winning entry in a public art competition organised by the Dublin Docklands Development Authority to celebrate the new life of the quayside or campshires, along the River Liffey.
'Universal Links on Human Rights' (1995), by Tony O'Malley
Universal Links on Human Rights is a memorial sculpture located on the traffic island at the junction of Amiens Street and Memorial Road, close to Busáras and The Customs House. It is a sphere of welded interlinked chains and bars, 260cm in diameter, housing an eternal flame powered by natural gas from Kinsale. This sculpture was commissioned by Amnesty International in 1995. It represents the jails around the world holding prisoners of conscience.
'Grand Canal Square' by Martha Schwartz
Grand Canal Square in Dublin's Docklands was designed by Martha Schwartz. The 10,000 sq metre square is one of the largest paved public spaces in Dublin City.
The Square features a striking composition of a red "carpet" extending from the theatre into and over the dock. This is crossed by a green "carpet" of paving with lawns and vegetation. The red "carpet" is made of bright red resin-glass paving covered with red glowing angled light sticks. The green "carpet" of polygon-shaped planters filled with marsh like vegetation provides seating and will connect the new hotel to the office development across the square.
Grand Canal Square is also criss-crossed by granite-paved paths that allow movement across it in any possible direction, while still allowing for the Square to host major public events such as festivals and performances. The layout can accommodate a diverse range of activities throughout the day and night.
'The Famine Memorial' (1997) by Rowan Gillespie
This location is a particularly appropraite and historic as one of the first voyages of the Famine period was on the 'Perserverance' which sailed from Custom House Quay on St. Patrick's Day 1846. Captain William Scott, a native of the Shetland Isles, was a veteran of the Atlantic crossing, gave up his office job in New Brunswick to take the 'Perserverance' out of Dublin. He was 74 years old. The Steerage fare on the ship was £3 and 210 passengers made the historical journey. They landed in New York on the 18th May 1846. All passengers and crew survived the journey.
'Famine (1997) was commissioned by Norma Smurfit and presented to the City of Dublin in 1997. The sculpture is a commemorative work dedicated to those Irish people forced to emigrate during the 19th century Irish Famine. The bronze sculptures were designed and crafted by Dublin sculptor Rowan Gillespie and are located on Custom House Quay in Dublin's Docklands.
'The World Poverty Stone' (1987), by Stuart McGrath
The World Poverty Stone is a commemorative stone marking the United Nations International Day for the Eradication of World Poverty. It is sited to the east of the Famine Sculptures on Custom House Quay in the heart of Dublin's Docklands.
This limestone memorial was commissioned as a gesture of solidarity with people living in poverty around the world. On the 17th October 1987, in response to the call of Joseph Wresinski - founder of the International Movement ATD Fourth World - 100,000 defenders of human rights gathered in Paris to honour the victims of hunger, violence and ignorance, to express their refusal of extreme poverty and to call on people from all walks of life to unite to ensure respect for human rights. A commemorative stone proclaiming this message was inaugurated on this occasion on the Plaza of Human Rights and Liberties - where the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was signed in 1948.
Since then, on the 17th October each year, people from all walks of life, gather throughout the world to express their solidarity and commitment to ensure that everyone's dignity and freedom are respected.