Determined to find an artwork that could command rather than succumb to the architecture, Trinity sought a piece with sufficient scale, mass, and surface dynamism to animate a hard-edged, shaded plaza.

The acquisition proved to be a natural convergence of interests. While the college searched internationally for a focal point of genuine stature, Italian sculptor Arnaldo Pomodoro was expanding his seminal series of ruptured spheres across high-profile architectural contexts—including the Vatican Museums and the United Nations Plaza in New York.

In 1982, Pomodoro generously gifted the primary bronze casting to Trinity College. Through combined funding from the university, Italian cultural institutions, and private benefactors, the necessary mounting infrastructure and logistical operations were assembled. When Sfera con Sfera was mounted on its low granite plinth in 1983, the forecourt found its ideal counterweight.

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PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE SPHERE

Black Cactus at Trinity College Dublin - Alexander Calder’s Masterclass in Steel

A Black Stabile on Fellows’ Square

In the high-energy landscape of urban public art, certain works command attention not through saturated colour or sprawling scale, but through pure structural authority. Positioned on the circular lawn of Fellows’ Square at Trinity College Dublin, Alexander Calder’s 1967 sculpture Cactus Provisoire stands as an exemplar of form, material weight, and spatial discipline.


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PHOTOGRAPHS OF THIS SCULPTURE

Trinity College Campus 9 October 2026

I visited Trinity College in order to test my Leica Q3 before I travelled to Limerick 

Taking off on a documentary project across Limerick City and County demands gear that reacts as fast as the street moves. For the past week, I have been field-testing and refining my Leica Q3 setup to solve real-world friction points—specifically geolocation accuracy, zone focusing ergonomics, and balance with the compact Godox iT30Pro L TTL mini flash.   

THE COLLEGE CAMPUS OCTOBER 2026