The Four Courts, Dublin (1)

September 2008

The Four Courts is a landmark building in the Irish and Dublin history and is the home of the Irish law courts since 1796. Four Courts are located along the River Liffey on the north quayside, in Dublin's city centre. This 18^th century building, a masterpiece of the Georgian Dublin was designed by the English architect James Gandon (1742–1823), the building has Palladian and Neoclassical style influences.

The building main features are the massive drum and shallow dome, the main portico with Corinthian columns, and the decorative exterior statues of Justice, Mercy, Wisdom, and Moses. Four Courts is a dominant structure on the scale of rows of buildings that line the River Liffey in Georgian Dublin now days.

The Four Courts was burned during the Civil War in 1922 and also was destroyed the irreplaceable collection of 700 years of accumulated historical documents held in the adjoining Public Record Office.  The building was later artfully restored but most of the Gandon’s interior original work is gone. The exterior was unchanged from the original except for the dome which had to be reconstructed in its entirety.

It is just faces the block of apartments on the opposite side of Church Street, where I live in, I have wandered in its environs for the past eight years and I have taken several shots in different times. I think that I have captured a good side of the spirit of this building, and I wish to share some of them with mi bloggers here.

August 2003

August 2003

Reflection on the river, 2003

October 2008

February 2009

February 2009

September 2008

Portrait of Zaida, a friend of mine in front of Four Courts, December 2010

Self-portrait  in front of Four Courts, March 2009

Mathematics and Art!

Strange and unusual relationship… perhaps would be your first idea about such a combination, but let us listen at what a friend of mine Dr. Maurice O’Reilly will tell us in his lecture tonight, (October 21^st from 7.00-9.00 pm) at the “Dublin Contemporary 2011” Art exhibition on Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin 2, LT2.

 

“The study of Mathematics involves not only the acquisition of computational skills and algorithms, but also the understanding of abstract concepts”

 

Theory and applications of mathematics ‘a way of seeing art’

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Images: Force Fit by artist Liam O’Callaghan and a portrait of 
Dr. Maurice O’Reilly, courtesy of Dublin Contemporary 2011

No.1 Nun’s Lane House in Killester, Dublin

As part of Open House Dublin 2011, I was a volunteer in No.1 Nun’s Lane House in Killester, Dublin by DONAL HICKEY ARCHITECTS. This is a contemporary three-bed roomed house with an adjacent office for the owner, an architect.

The day was a typical dull autumn day, but luckily with no rain.  Over 300 people came along and we managed to run eight tours between 12:00 and 6:00 pm.

From my point of view, this house has two outstanding features: the use of natural light in a very successful, balanced way, and the use of both existing and created views.

 The layout of this  urban house is unusual and innovative but also highly successful in providing  three different courtyards which act as functional extensions for the interior and amplify the sense of space while also providing enjoyable views. Finally the use of a dramatic but sensitive pallet of materials (exposed concrete, timber, glass, steel, and natural stone) complements the overall scheme, making this a great Irish architectural work.

I enjoyed having the opportunity to support Open House in escorting members of the public during their tour of this project in the company of Joan, and wish to stand out the owners of the property, who proved to be such excellent hosts.

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Open House Dublin 2011

Open House Dublin 2011 is starting today, busy weekend with a lot of locations to get to! Most Open House Dublin buildings and events are easily reached by foot, bike, train or tram, and all of them are FREE. Good starting for this blog to invite everibody to get involved in this event.

Presented by the Irish Architecture Foundation, Open House Dublin is Ireland's largest architecture festival.

Read more:

http://www.openhousedublin.com/