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Architect's wife reveals
role in iconic chapel
15.07.08
IT STANDS as one of
Ireland's most iconic buildings but Burt chapel
might have looked altogether different had it not
been for the architect's wife, it's been revealed.
Joy McCormick, widow of Liam McCormick told the
launch of a major exhibition of her late husband's
work, how St. Aengus Chapel "dominated their lives".
The couple had not been long married when Liam
revealed he was under severe pressure about the
design of the circular structure. |
"Liam said he was being
bullied so much by everyone not to have an
off-centre roof," she told the pre-launch seminar.
When it looked like he might cave in to the
pressure, Joy told him, in no uncertain terms, that
she may have chosen the wrong husband "if he was
someone who was going to give in so easily".
And so the off-centre copper roof |
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remained and became
part of the design that would one day be named
'Building of the Twentieth Century'.
Joy's personal insights into the work of her
acclaimed husband provided an amusing and
informative backdrop to the launch on Saturday of
North by North West, a retrospective of McCormick's
work, now showing at the new Regional Cultural
Centre in Letterkenny. The exhibition and
accompanying book of the same name, chronicle the
work of the man described as the "father of modern
church architecture in Ireland". McCormick was one
of only a handful of Irish architects to attract an
international reputation and during his long career
he built more 30 churches. He also designed
residential properties including a seaside retreat
for Nobel Laureate Dr. John Hume, who performed the
official opening.
Meanwhile, the impressive Regional Cultural Centre,
designed by McGabhann Architects, was also, quite
fittingly, officially opened on the same day.
Architect Tarla McGabhann, who was greatly inspired
by McCormick's work, gave a presentation outlining
the influences and inspiration behind McCormick's
Donegal chapels including Creeslough, Glenties and
Desertegney as well as others further afield
including Fossa in Killarney, Co Kerry.
Meanwhile, Joy described how she met the architect
when her father, a Church of Ireland minister, was
posted to Moville. They honeymooned in a
little-known Canary island called...Lanzarote, when
it had only one hotel and they settled in
McCormick's beloved ancestral home by the sea in
Greencastle. She said her husband was a "great
romantic" who loved sailing and the sea. She joked
that the most important things in his life were
boats, architecture and family...in that order.
For more pictures from the Regional Cultural Centre
click here. |
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