Restless Statue

Marion emailed to let me know that they were 'putting up Christ The King' near the new library in Dun Laoghaire. I wasn't sure what she meant but guessed that the Christ in question was some kind of sculpture/statue. I hadn't realised it was that strange bronze 'triple-cross' memorial I'd often noticed on Haigh Terrace. It stood below the church that is now the Maritime Museum, at the top of the steps overlooking The Metals and East Pier.

When I arrived there was a small group waiting, a couple of photographers and a film maker. The statue was supine on wooden pallets braced behind a forklift, bundled in protective belts and layers, and chains, with workers in hi-vis and hardhats wandering around, checking and rechecking; something of Frankenstein, and a hi-tech Golgotha. Understandably, we weren't allowed close enough to get any interesting shots, so it was a bit frustrating. I kept waiting, hoping to get something clearer, thiking of the opening scene in Fellini's La Dolce Vita . But Andrew O'Connor's statue is far more amorphous (even without the protective layers), impossible to get the graphic outline that makes a definitive image. I think that was what always slightly bothered me about it, its blobbiness. But it is certainly an interesting sculpture, and far better than most Dublin statuary.

The sculpture was being moved to make way for the new library and there is some opposition by local councillors to this. I did a bit of googling and found an article in The Herald which also give some interesting background. Apparently it was originally due to be erected in 1931 but this got delayed and then WW2 broke out. So 'it was hidden in France to avoid its three tonnes being melted down for war use.' It was eventually brought to Dun Laoghaire in 1949 but then there was further controversy, this time from the clergy who objected to its 'stark design.' Funny that. The starker elements, such as the expressive Rodinesque bodies and faces, are what I like. It was kept in a back garden till it was finally put up in 1978. So it has been unusually kinetic, a very restless statue.

At last, the huge crane began to do what cranes do and the thing lifted into the equally restless heavens, huge clouds swirling past. Still very hard to get that defining image, though we all tried.

Without thinking too much about it I had put Lola in the car, intending to take her for a walk on the pier. Of course, the whole operation took ages. Poor Lola.