Patrick Comerford
The public sculptures in Milton Keynes, and among the works I visited on a recent November afternoon is ‘The Space Between,’ a sculpture by the Irish sculptor Eilis O’Connell. It is on permanent display in Exchange Square, the open plaza in front of the Holiday Inn at the corner of Saxon Gate and Midsummer Boulevard.
Eilis O’Connell’s ‘The Space Between’ was placed in Exchange Square to celebrate the Silver Jubilee of Milton Keynes (1967-1992). This work is in patinated bronze with fibre optic elements and was made by in 1992.
Eilis O’Connell is one of Ireland’s leading sculptors, and I have already seen some of her works in Ireland. She says ‘The Space Between’ is based on ancient Celtic boundary markers and the Ogham stones of pre-Christian Ireland. The artist describes the relationship between the space and her sculpture: ‘Exchange Square is a perfectly proportioned square composed of right angles and straight lines. To contrast with this rectilinearity, the sculpture is made up of curved forms.’
The sculptor was born in Derry in 1953 and studied sculpture at the Crawford School of Art, Cork, and the Massachusetts College of Art, Boston, in the 1970s.
She received research fellowships at the British School in Rome (1983-1984) and at P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center in New York (1987-1988). A two-year residency at Delfina Studios in London in 1988 resulted in her move to London. She returned to live in Ireland in 2002, but continues to exhibit abroad and works on commissions for both public and private locations.
She is a founder director of the National Sculpture Factory in Cork, a former member of the Arts Council of Ireland, a member of Aosdána, and a member of the Royal Hibernian Academy. Her honours include the Art & Work Award from Wapping Arts Trust, and the Royal Society of Arts Award (1998).
She has shown at the Veni Biennale, the Biennale de Paris (1982) and the São Paulo Art Biennial (1985) and her small sculptures have been shown at the Guggenheim Museum in Venice. Her outdoor sculptures were shown in 2018 at E1027, the home designed by Eileen Grey in Cap Martin, France.
‘The Great Wall of Kinsale’ (1988) has been described as ‘one of the most contentious public artworks ever erected in Ireland.’ It is composed of several sections and forms, and at 179 ft it is also the longest sculpture in Ireland.
The large rusted steel sculpture drew protest, concerns of safety, an attempt to deinstall it, and criticism of its appearance. Eventually, the rusty metal was painted, a water feature was added, and barriers were placed around it without her permission, so that she considers the work to have been ‘destroyed.’
Her work can be seen in several public locations in London, Cardiff, Newcastle, Bristol, Wolverhampton, Southampton, Milton Keynes, Dublin, Belfast, Dundalk, Mallow and Cork. Her ‘Under & Over’ is a bronze sculpture commissioned for Lismore Castle, Co Waterford.
Other privately commissioned works can be seen at the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA) in Dublin, the Cass Sculpture Foundation, Chatsworth Houe and Antony House in England, and in private gardens in France and Spain. Her work has also been exhibited in Chester Cathedral and Gloucester Cathedral.
‘Chroma’ (2014) was commissioned by University College Dublin for the New Science Building, in UCD, Dublin. ‘Atoms & Apples’ (2013) was commissioned by Trinity College Dublin to commemorate the life and work of Ernest Walton (1903-1995), who jointly received the Nobel Prize for splitting the atom with Sir John Cockcroft in 1951.
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