Sunday, 27 April 2014

On the Road - Part Two



The purpose of our road trip to Cork was so that the teenager could attend an interview at the art college.  Sight-seeing and photography were not on the agenda, or so I was told.
Thus, my only opportunity for the aforementioned pleasures was when the teen was attending said interview.
Luckily, Cork's art college is close by the stunning St. Fin.Barre's Cathedral, so I spent a pleasant while wandering around taking photos.
The French-influenced Cathedral was designed by architect  William Burges who won a competition to build it in 1862. One of the conditions was that the building was not to cost more than £15,000 and he came in for much criticism from  other architects as he didn't include the cost of the towers, spires and carving in his estimate. The Cathedral ended up costing £100,000!
He wrote to the Bishop of Cork (no doubt in response to queries about the budget overrun)  'In the future when the whole affair will be on its trial and, the elements of time and cost being forgotten, the result only will be looked at. The great questions will the be, first, is this work beautiful and, secondly, have those to whom it was entrusted, done it with all their heart and all their ability.'
As the Cathedral attracts many visitors, the answer to both these questions is undoubtably yes.



4 comments:

  1. Some fantastic architecture! Hope the interview went well.

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  2. What a stunning building. Amazing carving on the doors.

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  3. I'm glad you got some time to take your photos, such a pretty place.

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  4. Basic economics doesn't seem to be part of an architect's training; they hardly ever get their sums right. But when the results are as stunning as this who's complaining?

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