modular man
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I agree that limerick has some very high quality streetscapes, especially the Georgian areas however my impression (irish person, not from Limerick) is that it lacks any quality public spaces (the streetscapes aside). I never feel like there is a central point. Aurthers quay park is vastly underused addition which feels too tucked away from O’ Connel street behind a Dunnes stores which has seen better days.
I think that a lot people from outside Limerick only know it as they used to have to pass through on the way to Clare or kerry and have the impression of a one street town. Limerick has a lot of potential and there has been enormous improvements over the past fifteen years. I hope this trend continues.
I also think that the by-pass from the Castletroy side is one of the most important projects for the city and years overdue. I presume it has opened as live abroad so have not visited in a couple of years. Has it made a big difference?
It would be good if This thread could be kept updated in the same fashion as the ‘look at the state of Cork’ thread.The American guy makes an interesting point about architecture appearing in the property supplements in Ireland as opposed to the arts section. A good thing on the face of it………………………. :p
Its interesting how quickly that sold out. I wonder what the percentage of non professionals will be attending. I saw him a couple of years ago speaking in DIT. He is an excellent public speaker who oozes enthusiasm. I am sorry I will miss it.
Thank you all, I shall dedicate my thesis to the good people at Archeire (sorry Archiseek). Onwards and upwards, thats what I say.
The fact that a small albeit beautiful house has won the downs medal begs me to ask the question which Eddie Conroy touched on last year. Can the level of achievement in completing a house really be compared to the tackling down of something much more complex like community centre or art gallery? Are we really comparing like with like.
I can’t think of a more suitable site for this type of land use. The edges of motorways are eminently suitable for this type of development providing, as Diaspora said, certain conditions are considered. Here in France , the local Ikea has a three-storey car park despite that fact that it is located in the low-rise suburbs. It is very well served by public transport but still most people drive. I don’t think we should demonise people for this as the real problem lies with the supermarkets; cinemas and other daily activities located on the M50which are not served well by public transport.
The other thing is that whilst Ikea genuinely offer good design at low prices (I feel an ad coming on) it would be nice if they could apply the same logic to their blue and yellow sheds which line Europe’s motorways and try to do something that responded more to there generic (placeless!) locations.On a related point, I have no doubt that if this building had been constructed to a mediocre contemporary design, It would have been derided even more. This is a situation which will happen with the Ormond hotel further down the quays. We simply have to try harder!
I appreciate that the question is being asked for a very particular set of circumstances but it is almost impossible to respond to this building without investigating what is going on behind the façade. Georgian buildings respond to certain constraints of the day, from structural openings right down to beading details to hide joints. The plans of Georgian architecture responded in very intelligent ways to these constraints such that those who dwelled on the inside of the building benefited fully from what was going on outside. The point may seem obvious but this is not the case with the Zoe scheme. So is pastiche or facadism a good thing in this case? the answer has to be no. I accept that the building exists and I have no wish to rip it down but it doesn’t mean that I don’t think it could have been done a hell of a lot better in the first instance. Any perceived merits of the current scheme (I admit that the rhythm it creates is satisfying but hardly at the expense of what’s going on inside) could have been incorporated into a more contemporary scheme without creating a ‘look at me’ building. My main problem I suppose is that people have to live in this thing and I find it hard to separate that from this debate, especially as it seems obvious to me that the designer decided on a facade before he/she had looked at the plans.
I am sorry that, like a good politician, I have not really answered the question but I don’t like pastiche for this reason, it just stinks of lack of ambition and this is not the way a city should develop. Its wallpaper and not a very nice one either.It would be very helpful if somebody could post a picture or two of the zoe scheme as although I am from Dublin and am familliar with the scheme, I could do with having my memory refreshed as I live abroad. Thanks in advance on behalf of the ex pats
Whatever about the rights and wrongs of building a national conferance centre in Athlone, it has to be said, that building is a shocker!
Was is that the permission was obtained but the building did not conform and a retention sought, or did it never have full permission in the first place?
Originally posted by burge_eye
The spire might have been designed by an Architect, but is it really architecture?They said the same thing about the blinking bridge and it romped home. I imagine they judge each project on thier own specific merits. The spike could well become one of the most important buildings in Dublin with regards to what it may generate around it. but perhaps it is too early to tell
