Comments on: Polestar – New Public Artwork in Letterkenny

By: sharon

sharon — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 16:51:31 +0000

I think it is a beautiful piece…

I would like to reply to the comment about the artist making a lot of money … it would shock alot of people how little the artist actually earns relative to the hours put into the project, the money pays for the whole project to be made and everyone knows how expensive building anything is, the artist gets a percentage of that.

I really think that a piece of art like this is worth every cent…

By: kath wheatley

kath wheatley — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 22:22:04 +0000

as a sculptor visiting from Australia I was realy impressed by the strength and majesty of the polestar sculpture .I congratulate the sculptor and the town on commissioning it.

By: Rosie Harrison

Rosie Harrison — Thu, 07 Sep 2006 19:56:24 +0000

I think the polestar is a beautiful peice of artwork. In my opinion public art should say something about the area and the polestar represents the history of the railway in letterkenny. It reminds me of the angel of the north in the north east of england which is also stunning to look at and represents industry in the area.
I agree with the comment that the polestar will be a symbol of Letterkenny for years to come. I welcome a project that looks good for the town.

By: Damien Blake

Damien Blake — Thu, 07 Sep 2006 09:58:45 +0000

Kevin,
You can submit a Freedom of Information request to get that information from the Town Council. For more information, you should ring them on 074 919 4222. There is a small fee to submit such a request. Personally, I don’t believe the project was overpriced; an awful lot of engineering and work has gone into this project, and the cost includes substantive works on the roundabout as well, not just the payment to the artist. This piece will be a symbol of Letterkenny for decades to come.

Paddy,
I agree with you. I made the point much stronger on Highland Radio in response to some comments than I have here. If it fell to us as Councillors to allocate this E100,000, you can be sure it would have gone to serve more pressing needs. If it were in our remit to allocate funding to support the health service in Letterkenny, you can be sure there is no politician who would oppose that. But it’s not; we are told what we can spend money on, and what we can’t. The money for the PoleStar could be spent on a public art project, or sent back to Dublin. That’s the options we faced.

3rd Class,
Many thanks for your comment, I hope this has been of use. If I can be of any further help, on this or anything else, then please get in touch with me directly.

By: 3rd class

3rd class — Thu, 07 Sep 2006 09:47:03 +0000

we a group of children in 3rd class in Woodland N.S, have found the Polestar an excellent and exciting source of fun and learning. We did a project on The Polestar and this covered many areas of the curriculum, including art, English local history and even Information Technology, using the internet to find information and the article by Damien blake. We also did a display of this and drew pictures of the Polestar.

By: Paddy

Paddy — Thu, 31 Aug 2006 14:12:34 +0000

well, what is more important? peoples health or art?

go into the general hospital,people lying on trolley beds in corridors, in bad health..this is what the government waste money on?

i’m not against public funded art projects to improve the impression of a town.

but PLEASE, priortise what is actually NEEDED.
We NEED a better health service..not “art” projects like this.

i would also like to raise the point of public spending in general..it is taken for granted & not managed sufficiently.

it is disgusting.
how can some politicians even call themselves leaders?

By: Kevin

Kevin — Fri, 25 Aug 2006 17:22:00 +0000

as you say, the scheme exists.
i read on the front of the letterkenny post that it cost â‚¬120,000
personally, i think it is good for the town, but grossly overpriced..although i would imagine most of the cost going towards the artist anyway.

how much did the artist make from this project?

would it be possible for a member of the public to request the information from an office here in letterkenny?
if yes, how would this be done? in writing?

i believe the public have a right to know how their money is spent on such projects.