PHOTOGRAPHED AUGUST 2018 PUBLISHED 15 JANUARY 2024
There were two buildings on the banks of the river Nore and they were collectively known as The Tea Houses and as part of the ongoing development of the Abbey Quarter site, Kilkenny County Council recently completed the refurbishment of the Tea Houses on Bateman Quay. The buildings are located at the entrance to the new Riverside Garden and Skatepark amenity area which was officially opened in the summer of 2021. The Tea Houses are also strategically located adjacent to the bus stops for the City Bus Service and the Market Yard car park.
The Houses, dated 19th Century, and were known as “Pleasure Houses” have a history of operating a coffee/café type service as historically they were used by the gentry to take their afternoon tea on the banks of the River.
There is also a memorial tree here the “Tree Of Heaven” erected by the Bereaved Parents Support Group Kilkenny
There is now a pedestrian bridge connecting John’s Quay to Bateman Quay which is home to a courthouse and the new Thomas Woodgate Memorial.
On the former Smithwick’s Brewery and Bateman Quay sites, historical maps reveal that the area was subdivided into long plots of ground with one end on the main street known as burgage plots. These burgage plots were first established by William Marshall in 1207. A ‘burgess’ rented a burgage plot for a shilling a year and built a house on the street. Behind the house stretched a long narrow garden for growing fruit and vegetables. The burgesses built sheds in these gardens and in some instances, a dovecote, which ensured a supply of fresh meat for the family all year around.
I first photographed this memorial in March 2021 but forgot to publish the resulting images.
In 2021 I used a Sony 7RIV with a Sony PZ 28-135mm Lens and in 2022 I used a Canon 5D MkIII with a Sigma 24-105mm Lens.
Thomas was from Callan in Co Kilkenny, the son of Edward and Hanora Woodgate of Mill Street, and until recently it was assumed that he was 18 when he signed up to the Royal Air Force in late 1918. He died on board RMS Leinster on 10 October 1918, when it was torpedoed by a German submarine close to the Kish Lighthouse while on its way to Holyhead.
Altogether, 501 lives were lost in that incident, which occurred just a month before the end of the war.
In recent years, while research was being carried out into the hundreds of people from the Kilkenny area who died during that war, it was discovered that Thomas was actually 14 when he was killed.
Thomas is buried in Grangegorman military cemetery in Dublin.
The sculpture was created by CDS Architectural Metalwork. Martin Stapleton began his career working with his father Michael in the Farm Building Business. He began his apprenticeship in 1986 and in 1989 he represented Ireland in the World Skill Olympics where he finished 3rd behind China and Korea. After this intensive training, Martin realised that there was a market for quality metalwork in the construction industry which could be manufactured and installed to an extremely high standard, which was not an “off the shelf” product but instead crafted to suit each individual project requirement. This metalwork utilized mildsteel, stainless steel, copper, brass, glass etc and maximised the fabrication techniques and procedures to produce spectacular results.
The last time that I photographed my old friend the Beach Bear I mentioned that he had turned green maybe because of the salt from the sea. Today I noticed that the green surface that he once stood/walked on has been removed.
I really like this bear who appears to be on a mission to enjoy themself at the beach. However, a number of local residents have complained that the sculpture is inappropriate in an area of protected architecture and sweeping marine views and others have complained that the bear will scare young children as it is too aggressive “marching fast with its outsized feet it cuts a swastika like shape against the sky”.
The bear was donated to Greystones Tidy Towns Committee by local property developer and guardian of the National Gallery of Ireland, Dermod Dwyer. Mr Dwyer donated the bear in memory of his daughter, Caroline Dwyer Hickey, a teacher at the local St Brigid’s school, who died well before her time.
The Caroline Foundation set up by Mr Dwyer raises money for cancer research at St Vincent’s hospital.
I would visit Greystones to meet this guy … what about you?
The artist Patrick O’Reilly was born in 1957 in Kilkenny. At the age of 17 he studied at the Art College of Belfast, but left after on year.
MY OLD FRIEND THE BEACH BEAR [A BEAR WITH ATTITUDE ON HIS WAY TO THE BEACH IN GREYSTONES]-225941-1
MY OLD FRIEND THE BEACH BEAR [A BEAR WITH ATTITUDE ON HIS WAY TO THE BEACH IN GREYSTONES]-225940-1
MY OLD FRIEND THE BEACH BEAR [A BEAR WITH ATTITUDE ON HIS WAY TO THE BEACH IN GREYSTONES]-225939-1
MY OLD FRIEND THE BEACH BEAR [A BEAR WITH ATTITUDE ON HIS WAY TO THE BEACH IN GREYSTONES]-225938-1
MY OLD FRIEND THE BEACH BEAR [A BEAR WITH ATTITUDE ON HIS WAY TO THE BEACH IN GREYSTONES]-225944-1
MY OLD FRIEND THE BEACH BEAR [A BEAR WITH ATTITUDE ON HIS WAY TO THE BEACH IN GREYSTONES]-225943-1
MY OLD FRIEND THE BEACH BEAR [A BEAR WITH ATTITUDE ON HIS WAY TO THE BEACH IN GREYSTONES]-225942-1
Statue of Anne Devlin and plaque in commemoration of the housekeeper of Butterfield House which Robert Emmet rented from 1803 onwards under the pseudonym of Robert Ellis and used for the planning of his rising. After the failure of the rising she suffered torture and imprisonment. The statue by sculptor Clodagh Emoe, was oficially unveiled by Mayor Maire Ardagh of South Dublin on the 4th of March 2004, the anniversary of Robert Emmet’s birth.
Clodagh Emoe initiates collaborative projects and creates works that explore how meaning is formed through our connection with each other and the natural world. Her practice draws on ritual to create moments or spaces that invite thought and instill agency. Her exercises, a term she uses to describe her event-based participatory works foreground experience and perception creating instances where ideas might be played out and felt.
Clodagh has initiated numerous collaborative projects; Mystical Anarchism (2009-2013) with philosopher Simon Critchley (Prof. of philosophy, New School for Social Research), Creating the Common/The Unveiling (2010) a theatrical event parodying a failed unveiling of a monumental sculpture in sheltered housing for the elderly, The Plurality of Existence… (2015-2017) public audio works for Dublin, Cork, Carlow and Galway and Crocosmia (2018) exploring metaphor through horticulture to cultivate inclusion and belonging with individuals seeking asylum.
Clodagh’s work has been commissioned by Serpentine Gallery, London; Taipei Biennial, Museum of Contemporary Art, Seoul; Nylo, Reykjavik; Documenta XIII, Kaisel; Visual, Centre for Contemporary Art, Carlow; Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery; Project Arts Centre; IMMA, Dublin and Maynooth University. She has been recently nominated for the David and Yuko Juda Award UK.
ANNE DEVLIN STATUE AT RATHFARNHAM VILLAGE [BY CLODAGH EMOE]-224771-1
ANNE DEVLIN STATUE AT RATHFARNHAM VILLAGE [BY CLODAGH EMOE]-224770-1
ANNE DEVLIN STATUE AT RATHFARNHAM VILLAGE [BY CLODAGH EMOE]-224769-1
ANNE DEVLIN STATUE AT RATHFARNHAM VILLAGE [BY CLODAGH EMOE]-224768-1
ANNE DEVLIN STATUE AT RATHFARNHAM VILLAGE [BY CLODAGH EMOE]-224767-1
ANNE DEVLIN STATUE AT RATHFARNHAM VILLAGE [BY CLODAGH EMOE]-224765-1
ANNE DEVLIN STATUE AT RATHFARNHAM VILLAGE [BY CLODAGH EMOE]-224766-1
ANNE DEVLIN STATUE AT RATHFARNHAM VILLAGE [BY CLODAGH EMOE]-224764-1
ANNE DEVLIN STATUE AT RATHFARNHAM VILLAGE [BY CLODAGH EMOE]-224763-1
ANNE DEVLIN STATUE AT RATHFARNHAM VILLAGE [BY CLODAGH EMOE]-224762-1
ANNE DEVLIN STATUE AT RATHFARNHAM VILLAGE [BY CLODAGH EMOE]-224761-1
Sinéad O’Connor was a truly unique and iconic artist, and her death is a great loss to the world. In her memory there have been a number of memorials.
I visited Phoenix Park on Friday and at the bandstand near the Zoo I came across what I would describe as an impromptu memorial to Sinéad O’Connor … sorry about the quality of the photographs but my camera was giving me problems and I did not want to reposition any of the items.
Impromptu memorials to the deceased have become a common feature of the national and international landscape and they have greatly increased in frequency here in Ireland and especially in Dublin. They take many forms and represent various types of deaths; nonetheless, they have in common the expression of mourning for the deceased, regardless of whether or not the mourner personally knew the deceased. The site of the impromptu memorial may be located by the roadside, as in the case of a motor vehicle fatality, or outside a building associated with the deceased. In this instance it was a bandstand which may have been chosen as Sinead was a very popular musician.
The Bandstand at Phoenix Park is a freestanding octagonal-plan cast-iron bandstand, built c. 1890. It is located in the Hollow, a natural amphitheatre in the park, near the People’s Garden.
The bandstand was manufactured by Musgrave & Co. of Belfast, as marked with an ornamental escutcheon on one of the pillars flanking the steps. It is surrounded by tarmcadam hard standings, with grass and mature trees beyond.
The bandstand was originally used for military bands, but it is now used for a variety of events, including concerts, recitals, and dance performances. It is also a popular spot for weddings and photo shoots. The bandstand is a beautiful and historic landmark in Phoenix Park. It is a reminder of the park’s rich history of music and entertainment. It is also a popular spot for people to relax and enjoy the outdoors