For 1,300 years the chapel on Inish MacDara has been a sacred place, prompting fishermen to dip their sails three times as they pass and locals to brave treacherous conditions at times to celebrate Mass there once a year.
Now a group of architectural students from London are making their own pilgrimage to the area to build a ‘ghost’ chapel inspired by the history.
During the last decade the traditional feast day of St MacDara on July 17 has moved to the mainland for safety reasons at least three times, recalls the parish priest of Carna, Fr Padraig Standún.
“People are more safety conscious as there have been tragedies in the area and you’re talking 1,000 people from all over Connemara and beyond who want to take the boat over that day,” he states.
Its history and place in modern religious traditions was relayed to the masters students of the Bartlett School of Architecture at University College London – one of the most prestigious in Europe – by their Irish tutor and architect, Niall McLoughlin.
They decided to build an interpretation of the original chapel on the mainland to create an alternative venue for the saint’s feast day when the tides prevent the mass crossing, explained one of the seven students involved, Marta Dabrowska.
“We thought the original chapel had a really strong presence anyway so rather than a replica, the idea was to create something related to it, a see-through building with just mortar, so you can see through to the original one.”
The students travelled by boat to the island in November to see the stunning chapel and last week visited the site on Mace Pier outside Carna where they will build their creation behind the boathouse to protect it from the elements.
They are building the formwork out of stone and casting it in concrete which will be fabricated in London using advanced technology.
It will be built in four pieces, each weighing a tonne, and will be supported by a steel frame which will be attached to the foundation on the site and act like a pavilion.
“It will appear really delicate and fragile but will in fact be made out of reinforced concrete to give it adequate structural properties.”
The plan is to unveil the ‘ghost chapel’ in time for July 16.
See full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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