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Two Working Men

Two Working Men is a pair of statues by Irish sculptor Oisín Kelly. The work took Kelly three years to create and was unveiled in front of Cork County Hall in 1969. As with other public art in Ireland, the statues acquired a local colloquial name and are still commonly known as “Cha y Miah.” Two Working Men was Kelly’s second sculpture to be displayed publicly, following his acclaimed Children of Lir, which was unveiled in Dublin’s Garden of Remembrance in 1966.

Two Working Men sculpture showing two weathered bronze figures standing side by side on a stone plinth, both looking upward to the left.
Two Working Men, a bronze sculpture of two figures standing side by side on a stone base.
© · CC BY-SA 2.0
Two Working Men sculpture beside a modern glass-fronted building, with one figure standing taller and the other looking upward.
The Two Working Men sculpture stands outside a modern building in Cork, with the two figures posed side by side on a stone base.
© · CC BY-SA 2.0
Two Working Men sculpture seen from below against a clear blue sky.
The Two Working Men sculpture is photographed from a low angle against a bright blue sky.
March 2007 © Éamonn Ó Muirí · CC BY 2.0
Two Working Men sculpture silhouetted against a clear blue sky, with one figure wearing a cap.
The Two Working Men sculpture is shown in low-angle silhouette against the sky.
March 2007 © Éamonn Ó Muirí · CC BY 2.0

Identification

TitleTwo Working Men
Spanish titleDos Hombres Trabajando
TypePair of statues
Irish titleBeirt Fhear Oibre

Creator

ArtistOisín Kelly
Artist nationalityIrish

Historical context

Reason for not placing at intended locationSIPTU deemed the statues would pose a traffic hazard
Second public sculpture by KellyYes
First public sculpture unveiled1966
First public sculpture locationGarden of Remembrance, Dublin
First public sculpture by KellyChildren of Lir
Intended locationOutside Liberty Hall, Dublin
Liberty Hall significance at the timeIreland's tallest building and the headquarters of SIPTU
Commissioned forA statue to be erected outside Liberty Hall in Dublin
Commissioned in1966
Unveiled1969
Creation timeThree years

Location and ownership

Tallest building status of County HallIt remained the tallest building in Ireland until 2008
County Hall significance at the timeCork's new county hall building had unseated Liberty Hall as the tallest building in Ireland while the statues were being made
Reinstalled2006
Current countryIreland
Temporary removalRemoved during redevelopment of the County Hall
Alternative unveiling locationIn front of Cork's new county hall building
Original unveiling locationIn front of Cork County Hall, Cork, Ireland
Current cityCork

Physical characteristics

Figure 2 appearanceShorter and stout
Both figures poseGazing skyward
Figure 2 clothingCap
Figure 2 poseHands clasped behind his back
Figure 1 poseHands on hips
Figure 1 appearanceTall and thin
DepictsTwo men
Number of figures2

Iconography and meaning

Gaze directionOstensibly toward the top of the building
Interpreted meaningProfiles the common everyday Irish person admiring the finished product of work in modern Ireland

Other

Local nicknameCha and Miah
Nickname originDerived from the names of two everyman Cork characters on Hall's Pictorial Weekly
Nickname usageBecame known locally by this name after their unveiling
Nickname popularity contextHall's Pictorial Weekly became popular in the early 1970s
ContextA work of public art in the region that acquired a local colloquial name
Architect of Liberty Hall mentioned in reflectionDesmond Rea O'Kelly