I’M never really a fan of public statues.
They always seem grandiose and invariably end up as a toilet for disrespectful pigeons and seagulls.
Then there’s the problem of the nature of the person they depict, what they did and how that is now perceived through contemporary eyes.
For instance, the continued existence of a statue of Oliver Cromwell outside the House of Parliament (controversial even when it was first erected in 1899) is an insult to every Irish person entering the building.
I suppose there are a few decent ones.
The Jim Larkin monument on O’Connell Street in Dublin, hands aloft, is inspired.
As is the recent statue of Roger Casement, with the Irish Sea behind him at Dún Laoghaire.
The new statue of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip in Antrim Castle GardensAnyway, there’s a new bronze statue of the late Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip at Antrim Castle Gardens.
The Mayor of Antrim and Newtownabbey, Neil Kelly, said the statue was ‘beautiful’ and a tribute to the late Queen’s ‘extraordinary life and reign’ as well as her ‘deep connection’ with local people there.
Uncharitable comments about the depictions have been made, likening the statues of the late Monarch and Duke of Edinburgh with characters from the 1970s BBC children’s programme, Trumpton.
Honestly, you can’t please everyone when it comes to public art.
Still, the pigeons and seagulls will be pleased.
