‘Welcome Arrival’ lands at the Lourdes Hospital
A stunning artwork depicting birds in flight by local artist Breda Marron has been unveiled at the front of the Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda. The title of the art piece ‘Welcome Arrival’ takes its inspiration from the journey of the swallows and the positive energy they bring with them as they glide through the skies.
‘ The arrival if the swallows in Ireland brings people a sense of joy and hope that the warmth of the sun is on its way, the light at the end of a dark winter,’ explained Breda, who lives in Grange Rath. ‘ This transition of light and energy is reflected in the colours of the art panels, as they change from a deep dark blue towards the light blue surrounding the golden sun.
‘As people approach the hospital they very often have their many worries and anxieties weighing them down. The hope would be that that the art panels will give a sense of hope and lightness, however briefly, as people enter the hospital grounds.
‘Daire O’Connell had seen my work and she really liked it. So she was the one who approached me about doing the metal screens for the site at the front of the hospital,’ explained Breda. ‘It’s three metal screens, a tryptic, swallows all coming in and flying towards the sun.
‘A lot of the work I’ve done before used bronze or the willow sculpture; I’d trained as a landscape designer many moons ago before kids so it was something I wanted to explore. I’ve an affinity for birds as well and wanted to look at something like this incorparating the design element.’
The installation was extra special for Breda as work on it coincided with the 13th anniversary of her Mum’s passing at the hospital. Coincidentally, at the time Breda had written to the hospital suggesting they install a space for family and loved ones to go to for quiet time and space to think.
‘I never heard anything back and I just let it go. About a year ago I came across a draft and said my god how daft was I and literally two days later I got a phonecall from Daire asking about the piece for the front of the hospital. I had goosebumps.’
The second and final part of the art commission will be located onthe exterior wall to the right of the main entrance to the hospital and will be a continuation of the piece at the front gates. The money for the new artwork was provided by the building contractors behind the new extension at the hospital.
Daire O’Connell from Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital said: ‘We are very pleased to be working with Breda as these three panels are such beautiful pieces and it is great to be able to exhibit the work of such a talented local artist.’