Cork 2005’s exclusion of sculptor’s legacy condemned

“RISIBLE” is how artist Colm Murphy describes the exclusion of his late father, the sculptor, Seamus Murphy’s legacy from the Cork 2005 European Capital of Culture programme.

This year is the 30th anniversary of the death of Seamus Murphy, a man who played a pivotal role in the cultural life of the city and indeed the country.

“Neither my father nor my (maternal) grandfather (the sculptor, Joseph Higgins) would have come up for discussion among the 2005 people. Myself and Orla (his sister, a writer) had to instigate something for these men. My father’s book Stone Mad is being republished this month by Collins Press. My father was born in 1907 and to commemorate his centenary, there’s going to be an exhibition in Cork City Museum in 2007. This coming autumn, there’s going to be a retrospective of my grandfather’s work in the museum. That’s thanks to Stella Cherry from the museum and my family.