Radius Project - Tumblr Posts
Some Sketch book stuff from my Radius Project.
Originally wanted to focus on the shapes of Arthurs Quay: the lines of the trees and the buildings, the light poles and fence, the cranes working on the opera house peaking over the Arthur's Quay building. The circles of the park itself: a "Radius" project on Radiuses was very funny to me.
I eventually got drawn to a different subject though: The heron who lives by the old rowing house. I talk about him in more detail in a different post
Here he is, my muse: Arthur the Heron (or Artie, if you'd like). He can be seen along the Shannon, but he's typically posted up by the old rowing club, or perched on a rock in the river when the river's low.
There's something about Arthur that just captivated me. I love animals and i have a particular soft spot for water birds. I think there's a lot to love about the heron: symbolising nobility and stoicism, standing tall and proud, like a statue above the water, waiting, scanning- and then. striking its prey with lethal quick precision!
But on the other hand, the Heron is a deeply silly animal. Look at how it moves, how it sort of has to fold in an itself. They make infamously silly noises, Kranks and Gogogos and ooooos.
I have a more personal connection to the Heron: for a while, my ma swore she was being stalked by a heron. Every bridge within 20km of our house had the same heron posted on it. On the way home from school in Carlow, on the drive to our favourite restaurant in Castle Dermot, sitting atop Cromabu as we drive through Athy. He disappeared with the pandemic.
I think more than that, the heron reminds me of home, and how far away I am. The Shannon reminds me of my own river Barrow. Herons have colonies, "sieges" where they can group together when mating season rolls around, or when they're "off duty" but other than that, they're largely solitary, largely alone.
