infomatique

PAVILION OF LIGHT BY DARMODY ARCHITECTURE

May 17, 2023 by infomatique

BANDSTAND IN MARDYKE GARDENS IN CORK CITY

I have photographed this bandstand a number of times but this time I had a number of problems but the main one was that I had to edit out a number of children who kept getting in the way but it is nice to see that they like the structure as much, if not more, than I do.

The other issue is that the structure is no longer uniformly white and there is much discolouration which appears to be much uglier in the images than it is in reality.

Here is how the developer (Darmody Architecture) described the structure: “Understanding the client brief in terms of the desire for innovation together with the need for a functioning pavilion was a clear starting point. This led us to a sculptural form which embraces the functionality of a performance space while being a poetic element in its own right. Our studies of fluid forms guided us to an aerodynamic structural skeleton with a technical skin inspired by the engineering of modern aircraft and its composite elements. This development of a fluid skin allowed us to explore and enjoy the idea of the lightness and the vitality of summer light. The canopy form was manipulated and folded creating the implied enclosure of space and light.”

The Mardyke is an area in Cork city, on the northern half of the long western part of the island formed by the two channels of the River Lee near the city centre. It was historically left as open space because the land along the north channel of the river is prone to flooding. From east to west these open spaces are: Presentation Brothers College, a boy’s secondary school; the Mardyke ground of Cork County Cricket Club; Fitzgerald Park, which includes Cork Public Museum; Sunday’s Well Lawn Tennis Club; and the athletic grounds of University College Cork.

THE KINO ON WASHINGTON STREET IN CORK

May 17, 2023 by infomatique

CURRENT MURAL IS NOT AS INTERESTING AS THE JACKIE OH MURAL

Dragon by Dan Leo has replaced the Jackie Oh mural at the Kino on Washington Street in Cork and to be honest I am a bit disappointed but that does not mean that I do not like the new artwork. Also, the Banger Events sign does not help.

The Kino was a 250 capacity arthouse cinema and music venue. Recently, not sure when, the Kino cultural complex reopened as a fully-licenced bar and nightclub.

Washington Street is a street in central Cork city, Ireland. Built in 1824, it runs from the old medieval town centre onto the site of the western marshes, and today links the Western Road and Lancaster Quay with the Grand Parade.

EXAMPLES OF THE CELTIC CROSS

May 17, 2023 by infomatique

ST. FINBARR’S CEMETERY IN CORK CITY

The Celtic cross is a form of Christian cross featuring a nimbus or ring that emerged in Ireland, France and Great Britain in the Early Middle Ages. A type of ringed cross, it became widespread through its use in the stone high crosses erected across the islands, especially in regions evangelised by Irish missionaries, from the ninth through the 12th centuries.

A staple of Insular art, the Celtic cross is essentially a Latin cross with a nimbus surrounding the intersection of the arms and stem. Scholars have debated its exact origins, but it is related to earlier crosses featuring rings. The form gained new popularity during the Celtic Revival of the 19th century; the name “Celtic cross” is a convention dating from that time. The shape, usually decorated with interlace and other motifs from Insular art, became popular for funerary monuments and other uses, and has remained so, spreading well beyond Ireland.

The Celtic Revival of the mid-19th century led to an increased use and creation of Celtic crosses in Ireland. In 1853, casts of several historical high crosses were exhibited at the Dublin Industrial Exhibition. In 1857, Henry O’Neill published Illustrations of the Most Interesting of the Sculptured Crosses of Ancient Ireland. These two events stimulated interest in the Celtic cross as a symbol for a renewed sense of heritage within Ireland.

New versions of the high cross were designed for fashionable cemetery monuments in Victorian Dublin in the 1860s. From Dublin, the revival spread to the rest of the country and beyond. Since the Celtic Revival, the ringed cross became an emblem of Celtic identity, in addition to its more traditional religious symbolism.

Modern interest in the symbol increased because of Alexander and Euphemia Ritchie. The two worked on the island of Iona in Scotland from 1899 to 1940 and popularised use of the Celtic cross in jewelry. Using the Celtic cross in fashion is still popular today.

Since its revival in the 1850s, the Celtic cross has been used extensively as grave markers. Straying from medieval usage, when the symbol was typically used for a public monument. The Celtic cross now appears in various retail items. Both the Gaelic Athletic Association and the Northern Ireland national football team have used versions of the Celtic cross in their logos and advertising. The Church in Wales since 1954 have used a flag with a Celtic cross in the centre.

O’DRISCOLL’S IN DOUGLAS SINCE 1885

May 17, 2023 by infomatique

O’DRISCEOIL

Note: Ceoil is the Irish for music.

O’Driscoll’s is the oldest pub in Douglas village. It Maintains an old, Irish vibe while retaining its status as a vibrant weekend pub.

Back in April 2019 I read the following in a local publication “A primely set, corner investment property in the heart of Cork’s suburban Douglas village which once was the focus for an €8m bar and restaurant venture is for sale for €1.75m plus Vat, let to three tenants and earning €174,000 a year in rent.” At the time the key tenants were Boylesports, O’Driscolls Bar and a Chinese restaurant, the Rose Garden. The property had previously traded for decades as the family-owned O’Driscoll’s Bar.

PALMENTO PIZZA

May 16, 2023 by infomatique

ON CHURCH STREET IN DOUGLAS CORK

Palmento Pizza in Douglas was started by one of the Tavolieri family who’ve been operating pizzerias in Cork for over thirty years and I read in a local newspaper that they have confirmed that they will be opening a brand new Cork city centre restaurant in a unit on the Boardwalk at Lapps Quay which has been closed since 2019.

Lapp’s Island was once an island in the River Lee. It is now joined with the island which forms the centre of Cork City, Ireland and refers to the eastern tip of that island.

It was apparently named after an owner in the 17th century. The island had probably been reclaimed from swamp at that time. In the 18th century it was separated from the main island by a canal which roughly followed what is now Parnell Place. It was fully joined to the main island by 1832.

The Custom’s House, at the eastern extremity of the island, sits on what was called the tongue of Lapps’s Island, and the modern Lapp’s Quay sits on the southern shore of Lapp’s island.