Anna Livia (monument)

Anna Livia
Anna Livia Plurabelle
Bronze sculpture of a young woman reclining with legs crossed, in a pool of water
Anna Livia in Croppies' Acre
Map
53°20′52″N 6°17′25″W / 53.3477°N 6.2903°W / 53.3477; -6.2903
LocationCroppies Memorial Park opposite the Ashling Hotel, near Heuston station since February 2011
DesignerÉamonn O'Doherty
MaterialBronze
Completion date1988
Dedicated toMichael Smurfit's father, James Joyce's Finnegans Wake

Anna Livia is a bronze monument located in Croppies' Acre Memorial Park in Dublin, Ireland. It was formerly located on O'Connell Street.[1]

Background

Designed by the sculptor Éamonn O'Doherty,[2] the monument was commissioned by businessman Michael Smurfit, in memory of his father, for the Dublin Millennium celebrations in 1988.[3]

The monument is a personification of the River Liffey (Abhainn na Life in Irish) which runs through the city. Anna Livia Plurabelle is the name of a character in James Joyce's Finnegans Wake who also embodies the river. In the monument's original location, the river was represented as a young woman sitting on a slope with water flowing past her. Dubliners nicknamed it the "Floozie in the Jacuzzi",[1][4] a nickname that was encouraged by the sculptor.[5]

The monument was removed from its site on O'Connell Street in 2001 to make room for the Spire of Dublin. In late February 2011, partly reworked and refurbished, the statue was relocated to Croppies Memorial Park next to the Liffey, near Heuston station.[4]

  • Anna Livia in its earlier O'Connell Street location
    Anna Livia in its earlier O'Connell Street location
  • Closeup of Anna Livia
    Closeup of Anna Livia
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Anna Livia Monument.

References

  1. ^ a b "New home for Dublin's 'Floozy'". BBC News. 24 January 2006. Retrieved 5 June 2009.
  2. ^ Colin Coyle (22 February 2009). "Dublin's 'floozie' still out in the cold". Sunday Times. Retrieved 5 June 2009.[dead link‍]
  3. ^ James O. Jackson (27 March 2001). "Dublin: From Boom to Busts". Time. Archived from the original on 2 April 2011. Retrieved 5 June 2009.
  4. ^ a b Allison Bray (25 February 2011). "Dubliners re-Joyce at return of the Floozie". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on 28 February 2011. Retrieved 25 February 2011.
  5. ^ "Éamonn O'Doherty". Visual Arts Cork. Retrieved 12 February 2012.