"Sacrificial Anode" in Montgomery Square, Canary Wharf, London

Eilis O'Connell (born 1953, Derry, Northern Ireland)[1] is an abstract sculptor. She is known for her free-standing works and wall pieces.[2]

Early life and education

O'Connell was born in Derry and educated at the Crawford School of Art, Cork, Ireland and Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.[3][4]

Career

"Helix" at One Curzon Street, Mayfair, London
Sculpture over Pero's Bridge, Bristol

O'Connell has been commissioned to make public sculptures throughout the UK and Ireland.

She is a founder director of the National Sculpture Factory (Cork); a member of Aosdána and the Royal Hibernian Academy; and a former member of the Arts Council of Ireland.

Her honors include the Art & Work Award from Wapping Arts Trust, and Royal Society of Arts Award (1998). O'Connell's works were displayed at the Biennale de Paris (1982) and the São Paulo Art Biennial (1985).[5] She has received fellowships from The British School at Rome and PS 1 in New York.[6]

The artist's 1988 work "The Great Wall of Kinsale is one of the most contentious public artworks ever erected in Ireland."[7] Composed of several sections and forms, it is also the longest sculpture in Ireland at 179 feet.[8] 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 O'Connell's permission. As such, she considers the work to have been "destroyed".[7] In artist Sean Lynch's 2011 show, A Rocky Road, at the Crawford Art Gallery, he investigated the legacy of O'Connell's Great Wall of Kinsale.[9]

She exhibited sculptures at Eileen Gray's E-1027 house in France in 2018.[10]

O'Connell's work is in the collections of IMMA, Lismore Castle, Cass Sculpture Foundation, Chatsworth, Antony House and more.[11][6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Ruckenstein & O'Malley 2013, p. 382.
  2. ↑ Finlay 1989, p. 202.
  3. ↑ "Eilís O'Connell: Conetwirl". Cass Sculpture Foundation. Archived from the original on 23 February 2016. Retrieved 2 January 2016.
  4. ↑ "Eilis O'Connell". IMMA. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  5. ↑ "Eilís O'Connell RHA Haptic". Royal Hibernian Academy. Retrieved 2 January 2016.
  6. 1 2 "Eilis O'Connell FRSS". sculptors.org.uk. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  7. 1 2 Vallig, Marc O’Sullivan (29 December 2021). "Cork in 50 Artworks, No 19: Controversy and rancour at The Great Wall of Kinsale, by Eilis O'Connell". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  8. ↑ "Kinsale Sculpture Controversy". RTÉ Archives. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  9. ↑ Censoring art : silencing the artwork. Roisin Kennedy, Riann Coulter. 2019. pp. 158–174. ISBN 978-1-5013-6158-6. OCLC 1167515918.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  10. ↑ "Sculptures by Eilis O'Connell at Eileen Gray house E1027". RTE Radio. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  11. ↑ "Eilis O'Connell". IMMA. Retrieved 19 March 2022.

Bibliography


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