This body of work was first inspired by the centenary commemoration in October 2016 of the Danish schooner Eliezer, which capsized in Waterville Bay in October 1916 with the loss of all five crew members. Meeting the descendants on the beach that day, and hearing the story of the ship and its deep connections to both the Waterville and Ærø communities, was profoundly moving.
The sight of the ship’s remains, visible at low tide in the Inny River estuary, became etched in my mind. A vessel at the end of its journey, slowly being absorbed into the landscape, carried a powerful symbolism and offered rich food for thought.
Over time, these ideas found their way into my work and were first realised in ceramic sculpture in 2018, exhibited at SO Fine Arts Gallery in Dublin and Greenlane Gallery in Dingle, Co. Kerry.
In 2021-22 I developed this work further by creating two limited edition bronze sculptures ‘Nine Nights in Noatun’ and ‘Noatun’. This work is inspired by Nordic Mythology. Noatun is the name of the home of the sea-god Njord. The story goes: “The seagulls were just too noisy. Njord loved his heavenly ship-abode floating over the sea, but his wife Skade did not agree. She only lasted nine nights then returned to the mountains”
You can see these bronze pieces in the Lavit Gallery, Cork.
