Nereid

Neried Statue (see below for explanation)

Kingsway, City Centre, Cardiff, South Wales UK

Camera:    Leica M3 (1955) with Voigtlander 21mm Color Skopar F3.5 lens (manual focus)
Film:          Fomapan Profi Line Creative B&W ASA 200
(self exposure estimate)


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Located on Kingsway in central Cardiff, this bronze sculpture is of an unnamed nereid, wearing a thin dress, with outstretched arms looking towards a bird held in her left hand, standing on a curved 'wave' at the foot of which are two bronze fish. The base may be polished granite, and is 152cm tall. The Nereid herself is 183cm tall alone.
Nereid's are the sea nymphs of Greek mythology, companions of Poseidon, god of the sea (who also has a sizeable sculpture in Cardiff incidentally, outside the Glamorgan Building). Nereid's are also helpers of those sailors and fishermen who get caught in dangerous storms (they assisted Jason and the Argonauts in their search for the Golden Fleece, for example).
Tradition tells that there were 50 Nereids, all daughters of Nereus and Doris, but more than 50 have been named in the ancient works of Homer, Hesiod and others. Nereids can be friendly and helpful to sailors fighting perilous storms, as mentioned, so potentially she is offering protection to the sailors of Cardiff, both historically and today.
Surely that is the significance of this piece of art to the city. In hindsight, perhaps it would be better placed in Cardiff Bay rather than Kingsway, but it is still unmissable when entering or emerging from the underpass of Boulevard de Nantes, if you're heading to City Hall or the Hilton Hotel. If it wasn’t for the riches of Cardiff’s golden age as the world’s biggest coal exporting port over 100 years ago, the fine buildings of Cardiff’s Civic Centre and the renovations of Cardiff Castle may not have been possible, so its locations may be quite appropriate after all.
This particular Nereid was unveiled in 1996. She’s the work of British sculptor and Fellow of the Royal British Society of Sculptors, Nathan David, who has a long and impressive list of work to his credit in Britain and around the world.