The memorial to James Larkin on O’Connell Street, Dublin, is unveiled on June 15, 1979. Larkin, a revolutionary socialist, dominated the Irish Trade Union movement. George Bernard Shaw once described him as “the greatest Irishman since Parnell.”

When Oisín Kelly completes his statue of the union leader James Larkin in 1978, he does not know that it is to be among his final works. He is at the height of his power, the go-to sculptor for public commissions in Ireland.

That Larkin would be commemorated by a monument in Dublin is proposed in 1959 by the Workers’ Union of Ireland (WUI), which Larkin had set up in 1924, after his expulsion from the Irish Transport and General Workers’ Union (ITGWU), which he had also established. But it is 1974, the centenary of Larkin’s birth, before the commemoration gets under way. Larkin had claimed to be two years younger than he was, which results in his centenary celebrations taking place in 1976 and the date of his birth inscribed on the monument having to be corrected to read 1874.

The memorial committee, comprising the great and the good of the union, includes Donal Nevin, who is instrumental in choosing the sculptor. Kelly is an inspired choice, as the resulting statue is one of the most dynamic public works in the centre of Dublin. Only John Henry Foley’s representation of Henry Grattan, from 1876, on College Green, exudes a similar energy. In these two works, emphatic gesture and naturalistic treatment of the men’s clothing create a liveliness in the figures. Foley’s 19th-century concern is to create a contrast with his statues of Oliver Goldsmith and Edmund Burke, positioned opposite, in the grounds of Trinity College Dublin (TCD). Kelly’s 20th-century aspiration is to please both his patron and the public.

Kelly, who had not known Larkin, chooses to use a familiar image of the man. Joseph Cashman had photographed Larkin addressing a crowd in Dublin in 1923. He looked so vital and passionate that the photograph has become iconic.

Once his maquette is approved, Kelly begins work on the plaster model in the backyard of his family home, in Firhouse, outside Dublin. His neighbour Eddie Golden, the actor, poses for the statue. When the full-size model is completed, it is transferred to Dublin Art Foundry, where it is cast in bronze by Leo Higgins and John Behan.

Although ready for unveiling in 1978, a delay ensues while attempts are made to quarry a colossal stone for the pedestal. Larkin’s son Denis is keen that it be carved from a single piece of granite, which proves impossible. Also, President Patrick Hillery’s decision to perform the unveiling necessitates careful consideration of his speech. The writing of several drafts ensures that his language is neither controversial nor ambiguous. The word “comrades,” present in early drafts, does not appear in the final text. The statue is unveiled on June 15, 1979.

The sculpture has a commanding presence on O’Connell Street, where it has become one of the most popular monuments in Dublin. It regularly serves as a site of celebration and demonstration and is often a central motif in photographs of union members and politicians of the left gathering for anniversaries, or of crowds of the aggrieved and dissatisfied marching past.

The quotation on the pedestal, in French, Irish and English, dates back to the French Revolution: “The great appear great because we are on our knees. Let us rise.”

(From: “Modern Ireland in 100 Artworks: 1978 – James Larkin statue, by Oisín Kelly” by Paula Murphy, The Irish Times, http://www.irishtimes.com, January 30, 2016)