Public Art
I have produced a substantial amount of public art work
in the north of Ireland, most of these have been in the
Belfast area. Most of my public work has been produced
in circumstances where I have worked closely with
communities, schools and other groups.
Click on any example image to reveal the full size.
Title: Hands on the Wall
Location: Glenbawn, Poleglas, Belfast
Material: Bronze, paint and a wall.
 
The Hands On wall is a project that was
designed to build 'social capital' in a housing estate in
west Belfast that was encountering social problems.
Bronze hand imprints were taken of approx. 60 local young
people and attached to the wall. A mural inspired by
aboriginal identity was painted onto the wall. Green
is for the Irish identity, red is for the land and the
yellow circle in the middle is the sun - the ancient God and
source of life. The two rivers stretching out from the
hands are the hands prints of scores of other children and
adults in the estate. Across the top are the phrases 'Ar
Lamh Ar Leas - Our Hands Our Future'
Title: Helix of Hope
Material: Mud, paint, rice straw, and bamboo
Location: Calcutta, India
   
   
The Helix of Hope was produced to reflect the
Hindu practice of making idols of their Gods and then
worshiping them for ten days before ritual immersion in the
Ganges River. My theme was that the future of children
is our God. I located myself with artisans who make
these Gods - people who work in very basic conditions and
with traditional materials. The work was then publicly
transported to The Loretto Day School, Calcutta where it
went on public display for 10 days (as happens with the
Hindu idols). During this time I ran art workshops
with street children who live on the roof of the school and
other children who attend the school. Their hand
prints were cast in clay and attached onto the base of the
sculpture; they then made a number of paintings that were
used to decorate the Helix. The theme was their hopes
for the future. After a public launch officiated by
the Head of the British Council for East India, the Helix
was again taken through the streets and ritually immersed in
the local Ganges River.
Title: The Kicks
Material: Bronze and stone
Location: Entrance to Poleglas,
West Belfast
 
The Kicks was made with another small group
from Glenbawn, Poleglas. After workshops where the
children made clay sculptures of various football kicks, I
then married many of their ideas into this bronze sculpture.
The work is a 'welcome' piece to the estate.
Title: The Druid and the Seat of Knowledge
Title: Dreamcatcher
The Dreamcatcher stands at the junction of Altananum Housing
Estate and the main road into Ballycastle. It was made
in conjunction with the Altananum youth group. It is
based on the native American idea of a dreamcatcher that
catches bad dreams and allows good dreams through. The
feathers on the piece are decorated with images of the young
people who were involved in the project.
Title: The Gatepost
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