What's your favourite building in Galway City, architecturally speaking?

TristanPeter

I have been working on Nun's Island for the last few months and during that time I have been watching the progress of a new building that they are putting up right on the corner, opposite the NUIG engineering block. I was thinking that this is a great location and hopefully the owners would justify this by putting up a nice, architectural piece of work...Didn't I have great expectations! The building is nearly finished and it's awful, imo. It's bland, unappealing to the eye and the kind of crap that has ruined much of Ireland. Think Barna, Moycullen, Galway City etc. I do like architecture and it annoys me to think that the developers knocked an old Galway City house just to put this waste up. Pity but no surprise. Anyway, I just thought I'd try to find out what buildings people really like in Galway City. There are a few that I like but these are my favourites (I think):

Apartment Block: The one across from the Cathedral with the sandstone facade (Earl's Island). Beautiful!

House: The one on Lough Atalia Road with the 3 storey rear extension with loads of floor to ceiling glass.

Industry/Commercial: The UCHG nurse's building (Art Deco I think). It really needs to be refurbished but I think it's cool.

This is about Galway City and the people's attitudes who live in Galway City to their built environment so please don't move it to another category mods if possible. Apologies if this thread, or similar, has already been done.

snubbleste

Galway architecturally speaking is a shambles.
Far too many eyesores to list

My favourite buidling has to be the old converted church on the corner of Abbeygate St & Middle St., other than that the big facade at GMIT has something.

When public representatives speak up about planning and structures,they are derided ie. the Connolly councillors

padraig71

St Nicholas's. Lynch's Castle. Neachtain's. All those old bits of masonry that jump out at you in unexpected places and remind you of the city's rich medieval heritage. The quad at NUIG.

Houses - Those doctors' houses along the Crescent, and some of the houses along Lower Salthill such as the one that houses a gallery (I think it's called Norman Villa). The Galway Arts Centre, with its graceful high ceilings and light, spacious rooms. I know there must be some examples of state-of-the-art modern houses - low-energy, eco-friendly, functional and forward-looking - but none springs immediately to mind.

Commercial - The Bank of Ireland building at the top of Eyre Square (is it called Hibernian House?)

For a good modern one, the museum. Let's hope the new cinema will be as good.

fatleomessi

Too many to mention but classically speaking Castlegar House would definately be up there..

http://places.galwaylibrary.ie/history/images/large/castlegar.jpg

"Mansion designed by Sir Richard Morrison c1801 and having two main facades,- Five- bay two storey with central bow South front; Seven -bay three storey with basement North front. The facades are nap rendered with cut stone dressings. The interior has exceptional quality joinery,decorative plasterwork and chimneypieces.Large 1890's porch and side extensions. Stable block at side. Site of entrance gateway moved c1990. All set within a large demesne."

happyoutscan

The cathedral could easily make any '10 worst cathedrals' list, if there was one.

The Marine Research building in NUI.. Think that's what it is anyway. Opposite the Quad.
Class looking building.

scrubber72

When you are on the prom walking back towards the city and are outside leisureland the building on the left. Dont know the name but its got a cafe in it at the mo and its yellow. Always thought it was deco but not sure.

Andrea B.

The Burrenmount.

TristanPeter

happyoutscan wrote: »

The cathedral could easily make any '10 worst cathedrals' list, if there was one.

Personally, I really like the Cathedral and I think it's one of the better examples of cathedrals in Ireland. I love the way the Salmon Weir bridge is perfectly in line with the main entrance.

I agree about the apartments above CoCo cafe in Salthill. They are cool!

quietobserver

happyoutscan wrote: »

The cathedral could easily make any '10 worst cathedrals' list, if there was one.

id disagree, id consider it one of my favourites

ronnie3585

Best; the apartments across from the Cathedral - the sandstone ones beside Fisheries Field.

Worst; The Bailey in Salthill. Really encapsulates all that was bad about the Celtic Tiger.

Fenster

Menlo Castle.

JohnCleary

OP: When you say working in Nun's Island - do you mean on the reconstruction work going on at the Poor Clares?

JohnCleary

scrubber72 wrote: »

When you are on the prom walking back towards the city and are outside leisureland the building on the left. Dont know the name but its got a cafe in it at the mo and its yellow. Always thought it was deco but not sure.

It's called Western House

inisboffin

The old buildings around Merchants' Rd/Spanish Parade (Kumars Indian).
Neachtains
Lynch's Castle
Menlo Castle
The inside of Oranmore castle is still pretty authentic and very funky.

The Townhouse (the old stone in there) that once was Bazaar, Punchbag, a Garage, etc!

The Old Smokehouse (Nimmo's / Ard bia)

Clemon

The rahoon flats

ErnieBert

JohnCleary wrote: »

It's called Western House

+1

TristanPeter

JohnCleary wrote: »

OP: When you say working in Nun's Island - do you mean on the reconstruction work going on at the Poor Clares?

No, in the Hygeia office block (and no, not the old disused chemical plant ). Not a very nice building (the one I'm working in) now that I mention it. I was told it's condemned. Reminds me of cheap, communist architecture from the 60s.

The Quad is a cool building too, even if it does look like it was designed for India with its minaret-like clock tower. I have been working underground in it recently, in a converted wine-cellar. The bottle stores are all still there. Someone told me that there was victims of the potato famine buried there on the grounds but I don't know if that's true or not. Probably not but the place is creepy.

coldwood92

Galway Catheral

granturismo

TristanPeter wrote: »

The Quad is a cool building too,

Deleted User wrote: »

The Marine Research building in NUI..

+2 for these.

ScumLord

Fenster wrote: »

Menlo Castle.

Could do with a lick of paint.

TristanPeter

granturismo wrote: »

+2 for these.

Both of these buildings (Quad and Martin Ryan Institute - Marine Building) work very well together imo. Their front entrances are directly facing each other if you stand in front of either. Nice mix of old and modern.

poisonated

The quad is a really nice building and well there are a good few buildings in the university which are nice.

oh beaten to it:D

inisboffin

Might get in trouble with some for calling it The 'potato' Famine in these parts;)

loser2old4board

St Nicholas's, Lynch's Castle, and Cathedral

St. Nicholas's also.
Mayoralty house
The former Bank of Ireland on Eyre Square

po0k

happyoutscan wrote: »

The cathedral could easily make any '10 worst cathedrals' list, if there was one.

What are you on about?
It's got a great oul 'intimidate the children' feel about it.

biko

Interesting but ugly, imo.

galwayrush

Fenster wrote: »

Menlo Castle.

Yeah, it would be nothing if it had a roof on it.:D

TristanPeter

inisboffin wrote: »

Might get in trouble with some for calling it The 'potato' Famine in these parts;)

Why

What do you think of the design that won the competition for the proposed docks development?

citycentre

happyoutscan wrote: »

The cathedral could easily make any '10 worst cathedrals' list, if there was one.

Fully agreed. It wouldn't have been so bad if they had stuck to a straightforward, simple Romanesque style (although the prison-like office block whacked on behind the altar area would always have been an eyesore). Instead the architects decided to come up with their own version of the arched and rose windows with a tacky pointed hexagonal effect and strange arches flattened out at the ends. It's like something from a sci-fi movie - a palace for Ming the Merciless I've often thought. The choice of wooly, squared-off rusticated stonework was also unfortunate, diminishing the gravitas that such a building should have. Externally it's a building that can't seem to decide whether it wants to look modern or old and the overall effect is just a mess.

Internally I find the overwhelmingly greenish yellow colouring, the lack of natural light, the overly busy stonework and the amateurish mock-byzantine mosaics all add up to a space that feels extremely unpleasant and lacking in any feeling of spirituality or the sense of uplift that a cathedral should have. Everything is so heavy handed, all topped up by another flattened off barrel vaulted ceiling that just seems to press down on the nave. I'd have no problem seeing the Cathedral bulldozed tomorrow.

I wish there was a building in Galway that I could rave about to counterbalance the above negative rant, but really there isn't much really great architecture to talk about. For me it's the overall structure of the city centre that I like, the winding streets, the way that you are always coming upon waterways in unexpected places, the intimate character that hasn't been eroded too badly by so much insensitive development. Galway could definitely do with the addition of a few really good public buildings. I have high hopes for the new Picture Palace Cinema having seen the wonderful job its architects have done on the Druid Theatre building. However the competition winning entry above for the docks does absolutely nothing for me.

Euro_Kraut

TristanPeter wrote: »

Why

How many potatoes died during the Famine?

It was a phrase coined by the English to distance themselves from events. The reason €1million people starved to death was not potato blight - rather the reaction of the authorities to that blight. There was food being exported from Ireland to mainland Britian at the time. Britain was the world richest nation yet still decided on this course of action. Retrospectively its a lot easier to blame potatoes and the stupid Irish who over farmed then.

Fact is blight occurred on many occasions (still does) and the impact was not nearly as severe. The Irish phrase 'An Gorta Mor' is what the natives called it at the time. 'The Potato Famine' is historical revisionism by people uncomforatable with the events.

Sorry, to derailing the thread.

My Favourite building is the new Museum.

Least Fav is the 40 year old Cathedral and the Bus/Rail Station.

inisboffin

TristanPeter wrote: »

Why

What do you think of the design that won the competition for the proposed docks development?

Because it's now pretty much recognised that the famine part wasn't because of potatoes.

*edit* yeah, just saw the post above. In addition 'over farming' was done without much choice as the land was so divided and spuds had a bigger yield per foot to feed starving families.

Back on topic
Nice pic

Sconsey

TristanPeter wrote: »

Why

Yeah as others have ponted out, there was plenty of other crops being grown by the Irish during the famine but the British took the crops and shipped them home.

Anyway....I'd have to say the Quad is probably the nicest building in Galway, interesting fact; apparently the plans for the Quad and Queens college in Belfast got mixed up, Galway was meant to get the original Queens building design and vice versa. Can't find any fact to back this up, just a story a teacher told us years ago... still I think it worked out well for Galway

TristanPeter

Euro_Kraut wrote: »

How many potatoes died during the Famine?

I am aware of what happened. Feckin Brits My old man is a Brit. I'll have to give him a wild beatin for his kind stealin our spuds and other edibles. No Christmas prezzie for him this year.

Back to the architecture: I really don't like the docks prize winner...but it is cool the way you can go fishing off the roof in a lightning storm, as in the picture :rolleyes: I'm surprised it won to be honest. It's very emmmm....unimaginative imo. Looks like a glass shed. They should just leave the shed they have there now and throw a few big glass windows into it.

Mrs OBumble

I'm more impressed by how functional a building is than how "pretty" it looks.

So I really hate the new museum. It looks great form outside, but is a right maze to be inside: you have to go back where you've come from to get to the stairs in several places. And I hate the private coach-station 'cos it's so stupid that it doesn't have a taxi-stand outside.

I've never been in it, so can't comment on the functionality, but the old grammar building on College Rd looks cool, and I like the story of how clever engineers/architects dealt with the lack of foundations by building a whole new building just inside the old one.

inisboffin

TristanPeter wrote: »

I am aware of what happened. Feckin Brits My old man is a Brit. I'll have to give him a wild beatin for his kind stealin our spuds and other edibles. No Christmas prezzie for him this year.

Ah now go easy on him for Chrismo. Nature stole the spuds, they only stole everything else

I loved Spanish Parade and was in shock years ago when the building that houses Thai Garden went up (Jury's too, but it didn't ruin the view) I disliked it so much that I considered wanting to live there so I didn't have to look *at* it! I know someone living in there though, and despite good windows, it's like living in a speaker at the height of summer!

biko

I like the old stuff but must say SAP looks good.
Wood saves another glass/concrete monstrosity.

Zapho

I'd be hard pressed to find a building I really like in Galway.
The Marine science building NUIG is nice enough and I do think the Catherdal is cool.

However, my favourite will surely be the NUIG's new engineering building.
http://www.e-architect.co.uk/ireland/jpgs/nui_galway_rmjm_070501_1.jpg

I may be a little biased......

I totally agree with you TristanPeter, that new building opposite the old engineering building is just AWFUL! The stone work on the ground floor is probably the nicest bit. They should have covered the whole building with that IMO.

TristanPeter

Magnus wrote: »

I like the old stuff but must say SAP looks good.
Wood saves another glass/concrete monstrosity.

That's a pretty cool looking building alright. I like the interior shot especially.

The new engineering building (NUIG) looks like an airport terminal. It's huge! I like it though and I suppose it's a good thing that it's big. It's amazing how stuck the uni is for space all the time despite the fact that buildings such as the IT building, the St. Anthonys extension and the Orbsen building are all relatively new. I do thnik they should have put an underground carpark in the new engineering building. As far as I know they have not included one in the design. Then again, maybe that's just encouraging lazy students to drive

lovelyhome

This post has been deleted.

dafunk

I like the old school house on Sea Road. It's sinister looking, appeals to my dark side.