Horatio Nelson may have been a bit of an imperialist, and nothing much to do with Ireland, but there is an engaging story attached to his life. The problem with the Spire is the problem with most abstract art and sculpture вЂ“ there is no accessible story.ДЄbstract art and sculpture may have their own beauty of shape and sensation, but they lack a narrative element, and the need for story and narrative will always be stronger than the sometimes more high-brow values of pure design. This would probably be considered 'inappropriate' by today's prissier standards. Ribald jokes were made about O'Connell, Nelson and Parnell adorning O'Connell Street, being 'the three adulterers'. The Spire's predecessor, Nelson Pillar вЂ“ always called Nelson's Pillar вЂ“ which was blown up by the IRA in 1966, was a familiar feature of my childhood (you could ascend its interior for sixpence and see the panorama of the city to the Wicklow hills) вЂ“ though I don't suppose there was any great feeling for Admiral Nelson at the top. There is a grace to its design.Д«ut I don't think it has ever really been embraced by Dubliners as an object of affection, as was the bathing figure known as 'the Floozie in the Jacuzzi'. The 120-metre steel monument does have a certain aesthetic appeal: it can look compelling as dusk falls and the lights glint in its reflections. It was also a metaphor for Celtic Tiger Ireland вЂ“ confident, flashy, overweening. The Spire at Dublin's centre recently celebrated its 10th birthday вЂ“ it was erected in 2003, under the aegis of Bertie Ahern, and Dubliners made a lot of jokes at the time about its suitability: yeah, a replica of a heroin needle pointing to the sky вЂ“ all too fitting.

Dublin spire