Replica of Ó Conaire statue set for Eyre Square
Pádraic Ó Conaire’s double could well be bound for the opposite end of Eyre Square – just a short hop away from the favourite haunt of late night revellers whose antics banished him from Eyre Square in the first place.
An update on the replica statue of Galway’s most famous Irish language writer was presented at this week’s Galway City Council meeting which indicated he could well be back on the Square by September.
Tenders will invited from Irish foundlings for the work, which will involve removing the original bronze figure from the City Museum to make a silicon mould in four pieces.
A wax piece is then produced from the moulds before the sculpture is created using ‘LG3 bronze’ in the foundry.
As the tender has not been awarded, the cost of the work has not been publicly estimated. But previous costs have been put at €45,000.
“It is proposed to locate the replica at the south-western [Skeffington Arms] corner of Eyre Square. The replica will be made from bronze and will be an exact copy of the original grey limestone sculpture,” according to officials.
The original was situated between the Browne Door and Richardson’s Pub before it was removed in the Eyre Square revamp and never returned, due to concerns over ongoing vandalism.
At one stage the statue had its head knocked off by pranksters.
Despite repeated requests to return the iconic Galway landmark to its original home, the only compromise reached between councillors and officials was the transfer of the statue from storage to a prime position in the museum.
It was only when councillors allocated money in the budget to pay for a replica that the project finally got off the ground.
However it looks as if there will now be a row over its new home.
Independent councillor Catherine Connolly was first off the mark to welcome confirmation of the replica, but said it should be fixed in a prominent stand-alone position in Kennedy Park and not hidden away for fear of vandalism.
Fine Gael’s Padraig Conneely urged officials to hurry up with the job that they had been pushing for since 2004. He said the Skeff side was too dark and attracted no sun and would not be a suitable location for such an important sculpture.
Cllr Mike Crowe (FF) sounded the main note of dissent, saying he disliked replicas and believed the real thing should have returned to the heart of the city, even if it cost €250,000.
“This is a waste of €50,000 down a hole,” he remarked.
That was echoed by Cllr Pearce Flannery (FG), who would have preferred the money to go towards commissioning a new modern sculpture.
Senior Executive for Arts and Culture with the Council, Gary McMahon, said as the statue used to be a focal point for visitors’ photos, City Hall planned to place it in a position which would show the backdrop of Eyre Square. He noted that it had been moved several times in its previous incarnation.
Director of Services for Planning, Joe O’Neill, said the problem in the past was that everything was put into Eyre Square and “there was no coherence to it”.
He said a suggestion by Cllr Terry O’Flaherty to move the Crimean Cannons to outside Galway Courthouse merited further attention.
It was pointed out there are virtually no landmarks in Salthill despite its stunning vista. New locations would have to be considered in an upcoming sculpture competition planned in conjunction with the Kenny Art Gallery.
The officials agreed to come back to the Council with a drawing of where it was proposed the replica would go.