Monthly Archives: June 2017

“It was all a great adventure,” Chester Beatty

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As soon as Whitney, Nicole, and I entered the Beatty Library, it became clear to us that we had not allowed enough time to fully explore this incredible space. This evening when we returned to campus, we checked the schedule to determine when we could return to the library. We plan to visit again before leaving Dublin.

As I was reading about Beatty, a few things stood out immediately, much of which is summed up in the title of this blog post and is a quote attributed to him: “It was all a great adventure.” Beatty viewed life as an adventure. His adventurous spirit is relatable, especially because I have traveled so many miles away from home to better understand Irish literature, history, and culture. There’s a hint of a kindred spirit in him.

On a somewhat superficial note, I was awestruck to learn that Beatty had his own librarian. The sheer volume of his collection necessitated a personal librarian. This unique factoid is a testament to the seriousness with which he viewed his collection. Beatty’s enrichment of Dublin (and the world given that his collection is showcased at many other museums) through his collection of ancient texts is invaluable. His approach to collecting these types of artifacts is the right one – his desire was for these materials to be accessible to the masses. The library itself is laid out beautifully (although the impossibility of taking pictures is almost painful), and I appreciate the timelines and explanations that accompany the texts. Beatty was clearly interested in religion, and given the volatile tensions between various religions, it’s surreal to see Christian, Buddhist, and Islamic texts peacefully occupy the same space. The sheer beauty of these papyri, scrolls, and books is overwhelming. I look forward to spending more time exploring Beatty’s collection and learning about him.

 

 

1916 Walking Tour

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One of the prominent themes in our studies on this trip has been place, and I think that no day has encompassed this day better than today with the 1916 Easter Rising Walking Tour. Lorcan Collins is not only an incredible storyteller, but being able to discuss the various aspects of the book and the Easter Rising while being at the places the events occurred was incredibly powerful. When Mr. Collins stood on the O’Connell Bridge and pointed out the various spots occupied by both the Royal and the Rebel forces. The proximity of the buildings was alarming, at the very least. The place that this conflict occurred was situated in such a populated and important area for commerce, which was purposeful. This was a place of power. I find though, that the proximity really highlights the potential for casualties. It was also very moving to be in the General Post Office, especially after reading the accounts in Collins’ book. In the taxi to the Hugh Lane Gallery, my driver told me that the General Post Office had been destroyed apart from the columns and a bit of the front façade. He had also said that the columns still showed evidence of the conflict, including damage from bullets. This information was echoed by Collins and supplemented by the bullet and ball that would have been used in the conflict. When the ball fit the indentions in the column perfectly, I was convinced that this ammunition was used in the conflict. This really brought home the idea of place for me. It made tangible the idea that this place, as beautiful and vibrant as it is, was once a place of incredible violence and suffering.

 

June 12

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Today was probably the most interesting day we have had so far. The 1916 walking tour was the one thing on our itinerary that I was looking forward to the most. I honestly have never read a non-textbook history book before, but this was honestly more than I could have ever asked for. The tour guide was so captivating and really brought the history of the 1916 Easter Rising to life. I had very high expectations for this tour, and thankfully I can say that they were well surpassed. Reading the book, it was a little easy to picture the places that these events took place since there were pictures, but actually seeing the physical places like the General Post Office, City Hall, and the Jim Larkin statue really helped me fully understand the gravity of the situations that the people of Dublin found themselves in during the Easter Rising of 1916.

Later in the day, Karson and I went to the Hurling Demonstration in the field across from the residence halls. It was such a fun experience to get to learn how to play a sport that is only played in Ireland. Eoin, our hurling instructor, was also a professional hurling player and went to school at UCD and trinity. He told Karson and I that he got his masters at Trinity and is now a High School Irish and History teacher. I thought it was so cool how this guy took a few hours out of his day just to teach some study abroad students how to play a game that they will probably never seen again.

Something that I have also begun to notice and appreciate about Ireland is how everyone knows so much about the history of the city. Back home, I would find it hard to believe that many people could talk for five minutes about its history. This is probably due to the fact that Dublin is steeped in much more recent history than Atlanta, but I still find it interesting how everyone is well educated on the importance of Dublin in Ireland.

Musical Pub Crawl

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Last night we went to the Musical pub crawl.  We learned a lot about traditional Irish music and the instruments used throughout different pieces.  For example, the fiddle (violin), guitar, bodhran, Irish harp, and  uilleann pipes. We learned that the Irish harp had been banned by the Queen in attempt to restrict Irish culture.

One of this things that I really enjoyed was the dancing. The woman preforming for us during the second pub of the tour mentioned how the Irish dance is very similar to tap dancing. I remember in The Dead by James Joyce there was a part where he talked about Irish traditional dance and my mom has recognized the name of the dance and said that in Jamaica people do this dance. I enjoyed being able to make connections in both of my homes: in Atlanta and back in Jamaica.

Refereing back to the violin, it made me think back to my childhood when I used to play the viola. I played viola in middle school and seeing Dermot play the violin made me think of  when I used to tune my viola and chalk the bow.

Through out this trip I have been linking my life and culture in Jamaica and America to life and culture in Ireland. Knowing  that  the Irish culture has influences Jamaican culture it is interesting to see how those two countries are so connected.

Day 5:

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Dr. Richardson’s mention of tour fatigue this afternoon epitomizes my current condition. However, today’s 1916 Walking Tour, guided by Lorcan Collins was enough to pull me out of my exhaustion. For starters, he is hilarious, and humor will always pull me out of a daze. Additionally, his ability to find humor within such a devastating subject matter is amazing. He is clearly intimately attached to Ireland’s history but can recognize the power his message could have when it is made accessible through humor.

Besides his humor, he was loaded with information made even more compelling when conveyed in person and in the places he writes about. The most memorable moment for me was when he pulled out the bullets recovered from the battle and placed them in the openings on the columns outside the GPO. We’ve walked past that place half a dozen times since arriving in Dublin, but never had I felt the volume of history resting in that place. Additionally, his detailing about how and where the soldier’s concealing themselves and awaited the Brits arrival added depth to a place that I was struggling to imagine as war torn. In fact, I’ve struggled entirely imagining the Dublin that Joyce and historians described to have existed at the turn of the century; there is little left in ruins, as is typical in most European, previously war-torn countries. In the article links here (https://www.irishcentral.com/news/dublin-still-bears-the-scars-of-the-1916-easter-rising-almost-100-years-later-170010346-237576791), one can see images from the battles that we have been discussing throughout this trip. Modernity, economic success and (most importantly) freedom (!!) has allowed Dublin to move forward from its history. I was surprised to find the Shelbourne Hotel in the article above. While one of our guides may have very well mentioned this place, and I just as well may have lost it in the loads of information we have consumed, I was excited to learn that the exterior remains as it had when the battle took place from its windows. Driving past this building throughout our time here, I always notice the beauty of its exterior and the traditional aspects of the doorman and bright flowers. I’m eager to examine it more closely for evidence of the battle concealed behind its beauty.

Afterwards, a few of us made our way to the Chester Beatty Library, and it exceeded my expectations. We were in awe of the sheer size of Beatty’s collection. The guide at the entrance explained to us that what is showcased is only 1% of Beatty’s collection, which was overwhelming for us, especially since we couldn’t even comprehend the concept of building a collection the size of what was shown.

Because of my lack of exposure to Islamic histories, I was captivated by what I learned from the Islamic collections (Here’s a link since we could not take any photos: http://www.cbl.ie/Collections/The-Islamic-Collection.aspx). Specifically, I was interested in the writing styles used. Besides the beauty of their script, one piece commented on the layering technique often used in published pieces, where readers would look to certain features in a specific order to find meaning. The bit of a time we had to spend did not allow me to completely internalize this concept, nor would even weeks with works, but I was fascinated by this alternative form of communication that I had never come into contact with before.

A Castle Frozen in Time

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Today was very interesting day. We finally got to discuss a little bit of Eastern Rising of 1916, and we even had a quick  review section of  “The Easter Rising: A Guide to Dublin in 1916″ By Conor Kostick and Lorgan Collins .I found the book  to be concise, and very well organized. The information found in this text was very helpful to understand the significance of the Easter Rising.  As a political science major, I was really excited to visit the places that held historical significance in the process of Independence of this nation such as: The General Post Office, Trinity College, City Hall,  and Dublin Castle. The experience was even better than what I have expected, thanks to our tour guide: Lorgan Collins.Yes! The author of the book! He is obviously very knowledgeable about the subject, and was able to provide very interesting details of this period of time.

Dublin Castle was in my opinion one of the most beautiful places we have visited so far. What impressed me the most about this place is the fact that it has been around since the medieval times. According to Dublin Castle’s website this place was built in 1204 and served until 1922 as the home of the English monarchs, and  Irish representatives. It was amazing to see how well conserved this place remains. I seem like it had have been froze on time. This reminded me of the concept introduced by Cresswell that explains that places hold significance not because of their location, but because of the memories that have been created in a that particular space. He invited us to think of memories as being  timeless and define not by space, but by history.

The Chester Beatty Library

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After lunch today, Shana, Nicole and I returned to visit the Chester Beatty Library at Dublin Castle, and words will not be able to express how much I loved it. The Library describes itself as “a vibrant, engaging and welcoming space for the appreciation and understanding of world cultures” on its website. Though we were there for much too short of a time – we all could have spent at least two hours – we were completely enthralled with what it had to offer.

I did a bit more research on Chester Beatty himself to understand the variety of his collection and why he became a collector. Beatty is actually American, born in New York in 1875. He graduated as a mining engineer from Columbia University and eventually established a mining consultancy in New York. From a young age, Beatty loved to collect and bet on items with his father – a hobby that stuck with him until he died in 1968. I can’t place exactly what interested him in the items he began collecting, like Chinese snuff bottles and Oriental art and books except that he likely traveled there and fell in love with the artistry.

Beatty traveled to London in 1911 after his wife suddenly died and became a British citizen in 1933 (followed by honorary Irish citizenship in 1957) and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1954. He established himself as a fierce and competitive force in the Orientalist art market during this time and he established a relationship with the British Museum – some items from his collection are also on display there, including nineteen Egyptian papyri. As he got older, he would buy items only to donate them – he appeared to me to be very conscious of the inaccessibility of art and ancient works and purchased items to be shown at free exhibits. The Chester Beatty Library, after all, is free of charge to see. I think Beatty enjoyed tracking down items of great value more than enjoying them and displaying them in his own home, based on the research I’ve done. The website for the Library says Beatty was “deeply committed to preserving texts for their historic value.”

The variety of texts and paintings/artwork on display in the Chester Beatty Library are a sight to see and I will definitely have to go back to get a true appreciation for Mr. Beatty’s collection. The worker at the front desk let us know that what’s on display in the entire library is only 1% of what he owned – imagine the other 99%!

Lady Gregory by Antonio Mancini

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The Hugh Lane Gallery houses an exciting and diverse collection of artwork. I enjoyed perusing the stained glass exhibit and the Francis Bacon exhibit. Bacon’s claim that his chaotic workspace was conducive to creativity was thought-provoking insofar as all artists and authors have strong opinions about engendering creativity under certain (usually repeated) conditions. For me, a chaotic environment is unrelentingly prohibitive of creative output. I found my favorite piece from Anne Madden’s Colours of the Wind exhibit, Winged Figure, at Town Hall today, although the pieces showcased at the Hugh Lane Gallery are all beautiful.

Ire/Land III by Patrick Graham is darkly evocative and is a piece I can’t stop thinking about. I’ve reviewed my pictures of it several times, and I plan to research the artist and his artwork in the future.

However, the artwork I was most drawn to in the Hugh Lane Gallery was Lady Gregory by Antonio Mancini. The reason I’m drawn to this portrait of Lady Gregory is because it crystallized for me her pervasive influence on the arts in Ireland. Not only was she a patron of Yeats and a co-founder of The Abbey theatre, but she was also an accomplished playwright. Her short play “The Rising of the Moon,” while on its surface simple, is a thought-provoking tale that in its deceptive simplicity challenges the audience’s notion of nationalist loyalty. Her portrait in the museum solidifies her influence and has encouraged me to further research her artistic and political contributions to Ireland.

 

 

Hugh Lane

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Today we visited the Hugh Lane art gallery. This piece by Harry Clark is made with stained glass. I read the informational brochure and found out that Harry Clarke can be credited with reviving the medium of stained glass which suffered a serious decline in Ireland. I  tied this piece of work to place because Harry Clarke took initiative to revive the art of stained glass art. This shows that he truly cared about his country having its place in art and participating in the art world.

The work of art titled The Eve of St Agnes was made using double layered glass, repeated lay acid etched to produce diverse tones and vibrant colors (Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane).

I also saw the Francis Bacon Studio. I thought it was interesting that even though it w as moved from London to Dublin it still has a sense of truely belonging here because Dublin is where Francis Bacon is from.  this has a lot to do with place because one could argue that Dublin did not shape Francis Bacons work. I really enjoyed this exhibit because the art studio looks frozen in time. Time is insignificant to place regardless of how much time goes by memory will not change or at least not very much. So for Francis Bacon’s studio time does not affect the way the studio impacts viewers. It is especially timeless. So, Francis Bacon’s studio embodies a certain liminality because it has physically occupied more than one space and place.

City Split In Two

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Today we completed the 1916 Easter Rising Tour. The amount of history in this city is amazing, and the amount of blood shed is unbelievable. I thought it was rather interesting to walk down the street along the river in Dublin and see the markings that bullets had left behind. There was constant fighting from 1916-1923 due to the uprising and Irish Civil War, and it was pretty cool to see some of the physical markings left behind on present day buildings.

I really enjoyed going in the Post Office downtown, it was basically a live page in a history book. I never realized the importance of this Post Office to the rebel forces; it was were their main base was located. I also learned about how significant women forces had been. Many places during this time period did not allow women to join in and participate in military forces. They were the ones that were supposed to cook, deliver messages and tend to the sick or injured. Not carry a rifle and protect their base and fight for the cause.

I also really enjoyed our tour guide, Lorcan Collins. He is so full of energy, very funny and was actually able to project his voice, so I never had to strain my ears to hear. Plus the way he told these stories, didn’t miss a beat in the timeline and expressed such detail in these events made me eager to learn more. His book and tour are by far my favorite things we as a group have participated in and read.