Meeting votes 'to accept' sculpture
Those who attended a public meeting last night on the KCC proposal to locate the Eamonn O'Doherty M9 sculpture in The Valley voted overwhelmingly that the community should accept it.
The meeting was presented with full details of the sculpture from the Council's Assistant Arts Officer Eoghan Doyle, who emphasised on a number of occasions that no other location in Kilcullen would be considered.
The two remaining trustees of the Valley—purchased by the now defunct Kilcullen Community Council some 40 years ago—each gave their reasons on their own divergent positions on the proposal.
Jim Collins said he was opposed to the idea mainly because he believed the piece would be 'vandalised or stolen' and Kilcullen would then be left with a reputation that 'it couldn't look after things'.
Brian Byrne said the sculpture by such an eminent—and recently deceased—artist would be a very valuable addition to the town, and added that if the community was afraid to accept something like this because it 'might' be stolen or vandalised, then 'we have lost the battle and might as well close ourselves up in our homes and never come out again'.
The meeting was organised by Kilcullen Community Action and chaired by Kieran Forde.
During the lengthy proceedings, which included some robust debate, there was discussion on the potential tourism value of having the 'Homeward' sculpture in Kilcullen. A small number of people said they didn't think the piece was appropriate to the proposed location. A suggestion that it be placed higher up in the Valley to make it more secure was broadly welcomed.
Eoghan Doyle will now report back to the Council on the tenor of the meeting. It was agreed that a group would look more closely at how the piece could be made secure in or about the proposed location.
A final local decision will have to be made quickly, as otherwise the Council will look at other locations, possibly including Castledermot or Naas.
(A full report of the meeting will be published in next week's Kildare Nationalist.)
