EXPERIENCE JAPAN FESTIVAL DAY 2017 [AT FARMLEIGH IN PHOENIX PARK]

EXPERIENCE JAPAN FESTIVAL DAY 2017 [AT FARMLEIGH IN PHOENIX PARK]


Today I joined many like-minded people in the beautiful surrounds of Farmleigh to celebrate Japanese and Japanese-Irish culture. Others brought their  friends, their family, their kids and many brought their dogs but I brought my camera.

Experience Japan is an entirely non-commercial, community organisation operated by volunteers. The annual Experience Japan festival in Farmleigh House and associated events are supported by the Office of Public Works, Dublin City Council and the Embassy of Japan. The Experience Japan organising committee are representatives of the Japanese and Irish-Japanese communities in Ireland.

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THE RIVER DARGLE FLOOD DEFENCE SCHEME [PHOTOGRAPHED APRIL 2017]

THE RIVER DARGLE FLOOD DEFENCE SCHEME [PHOTOGRAPHED APRIL 2017]


I had planned to visit Bray at least twice a year but I failed to maintain this schedule which is a pity but to be honest, with one exception, not much has changed since my last visit. The flood defence project is the exception because the is no doubting the fact that progress has been made since my last visit but considering that it started back in 2012 I am sure that many locals are less than impressed.

The River Dargle Flood Defence Scheme is one of the key capital investment projects by Wicklow County Council and the Office of Public Works (OPW) with an investment of €40 million.

MORE PHOTOGRAPHS ...

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PEEPING THROUGH - KILKENNY LIMESTONE [BOBBY BLOUNT - SCULPTURE IN CONTEXT 2016]

Bobby's sculpture is mainly based on garden pieces his love of gardens and nature are his main inspiration for his sculpture which can be seen in his work.

He works in Granite,Limestone, Marble, Bronze, Stainless Steel.

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POSSIBLY THE BEST FOLLY [ROMAN STYLE TOWER ON A HILL IN ST. ANNES PARK]

St. Annes is known for its follies, of which there are approximately ten, mainly around the Naniken river. The follies include a Herculanean Temple on a mock-ruined bridge abutment along the Naniken river, which served as a tearoom for the family, a Pompeian Water Temple of Isis on the banks of the duckpond, and the Annie Lee Tower and Bridge near the chestnut walk. Other follies include Saint Anne's Well beside the duckpond, after which the park gets its name, the Hermitage Bridge, Yew Circle and Fountain (behind the formal walled garden beside the house), rustic cave and bridge, three rustic archways and a rockwork feature. A "Druidic Circle" of Giant's Causeway basalt was lost at an earlier stage. An unusual folly is the Roman style viewing tower which stands on the hill overlooking the duckpond. This started out as an observation tower on the roof of the original house. Later, the tower was removed during extensive refurbishment of St. Anne's house in about 1873 and placed in its current location. It is modelled on the Tomb of the Julii at Glanum near St. Rémy in France.

Many of the follies are in a neglected condition at present, with graffiti being an ongoing problem. For example, the Roman style viewing tower is graffiti covered and has been closed for many years. In addition it is completely hidden by mature trees and could only be revealed by felling them, which would be detrimental to the environment of the park. An alternative proposal is that the tower be moved instead to the site of the old rockery, near the junction of James Larkin Road and Mount Prospect Avenue. In 2010, Dublin City Council, with the support of the Heritage Council, commissioned a strategy by conservation architects (Shaffrey and Associates) for the long-term conservation of these follies, and it is planned to implement this on a phased basis.

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MOBILE PHONE MAST DISGUISED AS A FIR TREE [NOT AT ALL CONVINCING]

I this supposed to be ‘green technology?
I think that you will agree that disguise wasn't very convincing.
In my opinion this is more ugly than an ordinary mast.

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NOVEMBER VISIT TO ST. ANNES PARK [AUTUMN - FALL]

I managed to get lost today. I got the No. 130 bus with the intention of visiting St. Annes Park but I did not know the the bus route had been changed due to extensive roadworks. The bus took a different route which bypassed the park. I got off the bus when I realised that the bus would not be going near the entrance that I normally use but I walked in the wrong direction for about a mile before I realised that I was going the wrong way. I eventually found the park but then my problem was how to get home.

The brothers Arthur and Benjamin Lee Guinness built up an estate of nearly 123.75 hectares from 1835 onwards in the Clontarf/Raheny area and called the estate St. Anne's after the Holy Well of the same name on the lands. Sir Arthur Edward Guinness (Lord Ardilaun) was the person most responsible for expanding and developing the estate and gardens and planted evergreen (Holm) oaks and pines along the main avenue and estate boundaries.

Lord and Lady Ardilaun had no children and the estate passed to their nephew Bishop Plunkett in the 1920s. In 1937, he decided he could no longer maintain such a large estate and negotiations with the Corporation resulted in the house and estate being sold to the Corporation for approximately £55,000 in 1939.


Bishop Plunkett retained Sybil Hill (now St. Paul's College) as a private residence with 30 acres of parkland. In December 1943, the main residence of St. Anne's "The Mansion" was gutted by a fire and the ruins demolished in 1968. In the meantime, just over 200 acres of the estate were developed for public housing with the central most attractive portion comprising about 270 acres retained as parkland.

The elaborate Tudor redbrick Ardilaun stables survive, as do most of the follies. A structural survey of these follies was carried out in 2009 with a view to conservation/restoration & the creation of a ‘Follies Trail’, complete with interpretive signage.

In the Central Nurseries, located behind the Clocktower Gardens, over 600,000 seasonal bedding plants are produced annually for the city’s parks. The wooden planters to be seen on the Liffey Boardwalk and elsewhere throughout the city, along with the tiered floral planters, are also produced & maintained within the Nursery.

The park is intensively used by the public through its 35 playing pitches, 18 hard-surfaced tennis courts, 4 Boules courts and a par-3 golf course. playground, fitted out with suitable units to compliment the parkland setting, along with a picnic area, is located close to the Red Stables.

The ‘Nanekin’ river flows through the park from the Howth Rd to the ornamental pond, then to the sea. Woodland paths add to the charm of the park. The park also has a remote-controlled model car track, located off All Saints Road, on the Raheny side of the Park.

In 1975, St. Anne's Rose Garden was opened to the public. In 1980 it was given a Civic Award by Bord Failte and the Irish Town Planning Institute At present the Rose Garden is undergoing a 5 Year Restoration Plan, begun in spring, 2015.  There is an annual Rose Festival held in the Park on the 3rd weekend of July.

To celebrate Dublin’s Millennium year in 1988, the Parks Department in co-operation with the Tree Council of Ireland, initiated the Millennium Arboretum. Consisting of 16 acres located between the main avenue and St Anne’s housing estate, the arboretum is planted with over 1000 types of tees and was sponsored by 1000 participants.

Dogs are allowed off lead up to 11.00am each day & for the last hour before official Park Closing Time. At all other times, dogs must be kept on a leash. There is a dedicated ‘Dog Park’ beside the Model Car track where dogs may be let off lead at all other times.

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QUICK VISIT TO GLASNEVIN CEMETERY[SONY F2.8 70-200 GM LENS]

My favourite lens is a 70-200mm because it allows me to stand well back and take photographs without people being aware of what I am photographing. I had a Canon 70-200 lens and I really liked it when used with a Canon 5D. In theory the Canon lens could be used with a Sony A7RM2 [via a Metabones adaptor] but in practice I found the combination to be unusable. When Sony introduced the F4 70-200 I was considering getting it but by the time I had raised the cash  Sony announced an F2.8 70-200 so I decided to go with that instead.

There are a few downsides - such lenses are inclined to be very heavy and they do attract a lot of attention [especially if they are white or cream rather than black]. Today five people asked me about the lens and much to my surprise two of the people had Canon 70-200 F2.8 lenses. Also one can end up with photographs containing unexpected detail. For example while photographing in Glasnevin Cemetery today I managed to photograph in great detail the interior of an open family vault. I have never seen an open vault before and I was a bit surprised as it looked like a lockup containing a large number of coffins all of which were in very good condition [they looked new but they varied very much in size and style]. The vault was also packed with statues, wreaths, pictures and dried flowers.

I deleted the photographs as they were an intrusion into someone’s private life.

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VIEW THE COMPLETE COLLECTION OF PHOTOGRAPHS

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ONLY A FEW WEEKS TO HALLOWEEN [PHOTOGRAPHED IN THE BOTANIC GARDENS IN DUBLIN]

My American friends ask me this time ever year if we celebrate Halloween in Ireland and this never ceases to surprise me. The story is a bit complicated as Halloween is a Celtic festival that was exported to the US and then re-imported in a much modified [more commercial] form back to Ireland and the UK. When I was young, back in the 1950s, Halloween was not really celebrated outside a religious context [which removed much of the fun] but this changed over a period of about twenty years and there is now no real difference between Halloween in the US and Halloween here in Ireland.

Today's Halloween customs are thought to have been influenced by folk customs and beliefs from the Celtic-speaking countries, some of which are believed to have pagan roots. Jack Santino, a folklorist, writes that "there was throughout Ireland an uneasy truce existing between customs and beliefs associated with Christianity and those associated with religions that were Irish before Christianity arrived".

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URBAN EXPRESSION AND SOME URBAN DEPRESSION [STREET ART IN THE PORTOBELLO AREA OF DUBLIN]

O’Loughlin Memorial Church of St John the Evangelist, Kilkenny

The O’Loughlin Memorial church of St John was built between 1897 and 1908.

The Church of Saint John the Evangelist, or John's Church, is a Gothic Revival style. The Church was built on the site of an earlier church located in the graveyard.

 It was built as the O'Loughlin Memorial Church by the O'Loughlin family of Sandfords Court. The site was donated by James Butler, the third Marquess of Ormonde.
It was built to designs by William Hague (c.1840-99), under the supervision of William Henry Byrne (1866–1917). 

More information at http://www.buildingsofireland.ie/niah/search.jsp?type=record&county=KK&regno=12000178

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PREVIEW OF THE SCULPTURE IN CONTEXT EXHIBITION [DETAILS AND ARTIST IDENTITY NOT YET AVAILABLE] REF-120470

Sculpture In Context 2016 at the National Botanic Gardens,Glasnevin, Dublin 9. 8th September to 21st October 2016

One of the events that I really look forward to every year is the Sculpture In Context exhibition in the Botanic Gardens and this year is no exception. Today I cheated to some extent because I visited a few days before the event opens to the public. The downside is that the catalogue was not available so I cannot identify the artwork or the artists at this stage but I will do so later in the month.

 Last year I switched from the Sony NEX-7 to the new Sony Full Frame A7RM2 and while it was delivered in time for me to photograph the exhibition the full frame lenses that I needed did not arrive until Christmas week.

This year I do have a selection of lenses one of which is the Batis 25mm which I used today. I am in the process of upgrading to the Sony family of lenses but the 70-200 which was ordered about three months ago may not arrive until the end of the month.

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PREVIEW OF THE SCULPTURE IN CONTEXT EXHIBITION [DETAILS AND ARTIST IDENTITY NOT YET AVAILABLE] REF-120469

Sculpture In Context 2016 at the National Botanic Gardens,Glasnevin, Dublin 9. 8th September to 21st October 2016

One of the events that I really look forward to every year is the Sculpture In Context exhibition in the Botanic Gardens and this year is no exception. Today I cheated to some extent because I visited a few days before the event opens to the public. The downside is that the catalogue was not available so I cannot identify the artwork or the artists at this stage but I will do so later in the month.

 Last year I switched from the Sony NEX-7 to the new Sony Full Frame A7RM2 and while it was delivered in time for me to photograph the exhibition the full frame lenses that I needed did not arrive until Christmas week.

This year I do have a selection of lenses one of which is the Batis 25mm which I used today. I am in the process of upgrading to the Sony family of lenses but the 70-200 which was ordered about three months ago may not arrive until the end of the month.

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PREVIEW OF THE SCULPTURE IN CONTEXT EXHIBITION [DETAILS AND ARTIST IDENTITY NOT YET AVAILABLE] REF-120462

Sculpture In Context 2016 at the National Botanic Gardens,Glasnevin, Dublin 9. 8th September to 21st October 2016

One of the events that I really look forward to every year is the Sculpture In Context exhibition in the Botanic Gardens and this year is no exception. Today I cheated to some extent because I visited a few days before the event opens to the public. The downside is that the catalogue was not available so I cannot identify the artwork or the artists at this stage but I will do so later in the month.

 Last year I switched from the Sony NEX-7 to the new Sony Full Frame A7RM2 and while it was delivered in time for me to photograph the exhibition the full frame lenses that I needed did not arrive until Christmas week.

This year I do have a selection of lenses one of which is the Batis 25mm which I used today. I am in the process of upgrading to the Sony family of lenses but the 70-200 which was ordered about three months ago may not arrive until the end of the month.

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