The Spire is worth a visit during both
daytime and night time. During the day the sun can be seen reflecting of the
polished stainless steel and, at night, the spire is illuminated.
The Tourist Information Dublin website
[visit
link] tells us:
"The Spire of Dublin, officially
titled An Túr Solais (Monument of Light) is a large, stainless steel, pin-like
monument over 121 metres in height and 3 metres in diameter at its base, located
on the site of the former Nelson's Pillar (destroyed by a bomb in 1966) on
O'Connell Street in Dublin.
The Spire of Dublin was designed by
Ian Ritchie Architects, a London-based firm.
The base of The Spire is gently lit
and the top 12 metres are illuminated to the tip providing a beacon in the night
sky over the capital.
The first section of the monument
was put into position on December 18th 2002. High winds hampered progress and so
it took until January 21st 2003 for the erection to be
completed.
This tall needle-like structure
quickly acquired a number of nicknames including The Spike, The Binge Syringe,
The Stiletto in the Ghetto, The Nail in the Pale and The Pin in the
Bin."
The h2g2 website [ visit link] adds:
"The Spire of
Dublin
The latest piece of amazing
architecture to be unveiled in Ireland is the Spire of Dublin, known locally as
the Millennium Spire. This is a giant spike made of burnished steel which sits
in the centre of Dublin's main street, O'Connell Street.
The Spire is enormous, standing at
120 metres high (about 400 feet). That's not all that high compared with such
notables as the Empire State Building (443m) or the Eiffel Tower (320m), but the
impact of the Spire is great because it is only about 3 metres (10 feet) wide at
the base and it narrows to a point at the top. It looks like a giant sewing
needle, as it soars into the sky above Dublin. The top section is drilled with
hundreds of tiny holes, like a cheese grater, and is lit from below by lights
inside the Spire, so that it glows. This serves not only as a focus for the
upward-pointing feel of the construction, but also as a warning light for
low-flying aircraft. The light mechanism can be lowered by a series of ropes and
pulleys to allow the bulb to be changed, so nobody has to climb up inside the
very narrow Spire.
The Centre of Dublin
The Spire is located at the
junction of Henry Street, Earl Street and O'Connell Street. This site was always
considered the centre of Dublin and was occupied until 1966 by Nelson Pillar, a
giant column of stone with a statue of Admiral Nelson on top. In 1966, the IRA
blew the pillar up, as they considered it a sign of British Imperialism. The
Spire now stands on the same spot.
Construction
The Spire was constructed in six
sections, each about 20m high. The first two sections were put in place in late
2002 but construction had to halt over Christmas due to very high winds. The
remaining sections were added in late January 2003, the final one being added on
21 January. Construction involved the use of the tallest mobile crane ever seen
in these islands, capable of extending to 140m and dropping the sections of the
Spire into place.
Why Millennium?
Although the official name for the
construction is the Spire of Dublin, it is popularly known as the 'Millennium
Spire'. It was originally conceived as a project to celebrate the Millennium
(the beginning or end of the year 2000, depending on your inclination).
Unfortunately, opponents of the Spire brought a legal action to prevent it being
built. By the time this was sorted out, it was far too late, so the Spire is
only being completed now.
Criticisms (and Rebuttals) of the
Spire
It cost a lot of
money which could have been spent on more worthwhile projects such as
hospitals.
There are always
more deserving causes than any piece of art. But if all the money was diverted
to hospitals, there still wouldn't be enough, and we'd live in a grey functional
world without any beauty. The Spire is beautiful and will make Dublin a better
and more interesting city.
It is out of
character with the rest of the street, being tall and narrow while the rest of
the street is low and wide.
If the Spire
were wide, it would certainly overpower the street. But it is so slender that it
fits in very well, although it is so amazingly tall.
It doesn't mean
anything. There are no inscriptions, statues or other things. It's just a bloody
big spike pointing at the sky.
So what?
Perhaps, people will be encouraged to lift their gaze out of the gutter and to
look at the stars."
The Ian Ritchie Architects website [visit link]
also tells us:
"Ian Ritchie Architects won the
international competition for a monument in the centre of Dublin. The design is
the flagship project of a wider improvement of the centre of Ireland’s capital
city. Obviously creating a national monument has involved many interested
parties. Dublin Corporation granted permission in 1999. The project was
subsequently challenged in the High Court by two other competitors. The judge
requested a full Environmental Impact Assessment (replacing a monument with a
monument) from Dublin Corporation. This independent report was submitted to the
Irish Minister of the Environment in June 2000.
120 metres high and 3 metres in
diameter at the base, the tapering monument rises above O’Connell Street,
breaking above the roof line with as slender and elegant a movement as is
technically possible. Its structure and surfaces respond to the character and
climate of the Irish landscape: the Spire sways gently in direct response to the
wind and during daytime the monument softly reflects the light of Ireland’s sky.
From dusk, the base is gently lit and the tip illuminated to provide a beacon in
the night sky over Dublin. It has its roots in the ground and its light in the
sky.
The bronze base is flush with the
surrounding paving, allowing individuals and groups to stand on the base and
touch the spire surface. The base incorporates a spiral alluding to the
continuity of Ireland’s history and an expanding future. The historical role of
bronze in the development of Irish art is continued into the future as the base
acquires both the patina from the Irish climate and the golden polish of human
contact.
The Spire was completed in 2003 in
celebration of Ireland’s confident future in the third millennium. British
Construction Industry International Award finalist 2003 RIBA Award &
Stirling Prize shortlist 2004 European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture
2005 Mies van der Rohe Award Shortlist 2005."