The Dahlia: Loud & Proud

Ceramic outdoor water sculpture, The Dahlia: Loud & Proud was hand-built and sculpted in a cranked clay body and high fired in an electric kiln. There are more than 1,000 petals on this sculpture. It has appeared at numerous exhibitions throughout Ireland.

Vanishing Art 2013 at Carton House, Co. Kildare.
Outside: Insight, Sculpture in the Gardens 2012, at Brigit’s Garden, Roscahill, Co. Galway.
Art in Action 2012 at Farmleigh House, Dublin.
Contemporary Sculpture in Irish Gardens 2011, Ballintubbert Garden, Co. Kildare.
The Millcove Gallery, Outdoor Sculpture Show 2010, Castletownbere, Co. Cork.
National Craft Gallery Garden at Bloom 2009 at the Phoenix Park, Dublin and Castle Yard, Kilkenny.
Sculpture in Context 2008 at The National Botanic Garden, Dublin.

Dimensions: 1.7m H x 80cm diameter.

Price: €4,000 (15 pieces)

Not for sale.

My inspiration

At the same time that our National Botanic Gardens in Dublin were developing in the early 19th century, so too the Dahlia flower was making its way from Mexico to Madrid. In the care of a senior member of the staff of the Royal Botanic Gardens in Spain, the Dahlia would travel far and wide and indeed this simple flower would become an obsession for gardeners for the next 200 years. From its humble beginning in the plains of South America, few could have predicted how much this flower would change through European plant breeding.

For me this flower sums up perfectly the symmetry of form that is abundant in the plant world.

What could be more perfect, more beautiful than the ball shaped Dahlia with its uniform petals that form together to completely fill its spherical head?

This sculpture portrays the flamboyant nature of this flower and depict the dramatic formation of the petals as they emerge from the centre of the bloom. The Dahlia is not shy – instead it is bold, it is ostentatious, it is loud and proud – as only a flower can be.

How was it made?

The Dahlia: Loud & Proud is a hand-built and modelled ceramic water sculpture. The individual spheres were hand built in my Dublin studio and then each separate petal was sculpted and joined on to the body. There are more than 1,000 petals on this sculpture. It was constructed using a grogged crank clay body and was high fired in an electric kiln to 1260°C (Cone 8).

Studio process shot of The Dahlia: Loud & Proud by Michelle Maher. It was sculpted in a cranked clay body and high fired in an electric kiln. There are more than a 1,000 petals on this sculpture. www.ceramicforms.com

About ‘Sculpture in Context’

The Dahlia: Loud & Proud by Michelle Maher. This ceramic outdoor sculpture is inspired by the vitality of the Dahlia flower and is shown here in the river Tolka at The National Botanic Gardens in Dublin, Sculpture in Context exhibition 2008. It was sculpted in a cranked clay body and high fired in an electric kiln. There are more than a 1,000 petals on this sculpture. www.ceramicforms.com

“As you weave your way through the garden, you will discover sculptures in the most unexpected and surprising places. Ranging in size and materials, these works of art represent the richly diverse character of Irish and International contemporary sculpture today.”

Sculpture in Context is the largest and most prestigious outdoor sculpture exhibition in Ireland. Established in 1985 by a group of sculptors, their aim was to work on behalf of fellow sculptors to provide space for exhibiting work of sculpture in venues outside of their normal gallery context.

Thirty years on and Sculpture in Context has gone from strength to strength. Since 2002, the show has made its home in the National Botanic Gardens in Dublin which is annually transformed into a living art gallery.

Artists’ ingenuity, contemporary art and Mother Nature are wonderfully combined here and as the seasons change from summer to autumn, visitors are given a reason to return again and again to see the sculptures and the garden in ever changing conditions.

Sculpture receives a spectacular presentation in the Garden, which is laid out in a variety of settings including glasshouses, ponds and foliage – winding through the 50 acres of landscaped grounds. With over 160 sculptures, this is the most exciting outdoor sculpture exhibition in Ireland.

The show runs from the first week in September to the third week in October every year.