Me Jewel & Darlin'
2011-2
Public artwork
Inside a display case positioned metres north of the Spire of Dublin, an exhibition programme showcased images and artefacts that evoke a variety of the city's artistic and social histories. Located on the central axis of Dublin’s main thoroughfare, the project suggests a loose alternative to the line of official monuments that appear there.
The first presentation was a reproduction of The Last Hour of the Night, by Harry Clarke (1889 - 1931). This illustration, made in 1922, shows a strange benevolent spirit of the city towering over and touching a Georgian tenement house. Translucent strands of drapery cover this figure, morphing into flames that encase the Four Courts, the Custom House and the GPO. With the original ink drawing now lost, the reproduction and placement of Clarke’s symbolic work allows it to publicly allude to the decay and chaos of the city.
