On Guild Street in Dublin stands a very strange statue: it’s a large head, representing Luke Kelly (Lúcás Ó Ceallaigh), a great Irish folk music artist. A veritable icon in Ireland, this singer, musician and composer was a symbol of Irish traditional music. That’s why this statue pays tribute to him.
Luke Kelly statue on Guild Street, Dublin – William Murphy – cc
Luke Kelly (1940-1984), was one of the most emblematic members of the famous Irish band “The Dubliners”. Highly committed, he composed numerous songs denouncing the Irish social crisis of the time, the war, the arms race, workers’ rights… etc.
Unfortunately for the artist, Luke Kelly was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 1980. He died of a tumor in 1984, causing immense grief throughout Ireland.
Since then, tributes to the Irish artist have been pouring in. The statue on Guild Street is one of them.
It’s a huge sculpture of his head. Very imposing, it was made from stone for the face and copper wire to form the beard and hair. The realistic image shows Luke Kelly singing, eyes closed, mouth open, clearly focused and passionate about his music.
This statue is a vibrant tribute to the Irish cultural heritage built by the artist. An iconic heritage, which not only endowed Ireland with some of its finest folk songs, but also revived Scottish music (Luk Kelly wrote many songs strongly influenced by Scotland).
Access to the statue is free and open to anyone walking along Guild Street in Dublin. We’ve lost count of the number of selfies we’ve taken with this statue. It’s a bit of a tradition here: it’s impossible to pass by without immortalizing the moment!
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