Frank Murphy (architect) explained

Frank Murphy
Birth Place:	Cork City, Ireland
Alma Mater:	University College Dublin
Spouse:	Mary Wood Wolfe
Practice:	Frank Murphy & Partners
Significant Buildings:	All Saints Church, Drimoleague. Cork Distillers Bottling Plant
Significant Projects:	Restoration of Skiddy's Almshouse, Cork City

Frank Murphy (1916–1993) was an Irish architect. Born in Cork, he was active mainly in the 1950s and 1960s, and his works include a number of modernist structures. In a 2018 editorial in the Irish Examiner, Murphy was described as "arguably Cork's most eminent and exciting modern architect", and as "Cork's unsung hero of Modernism".^{[1] [2]}

Life and career

Murphy was born in Cork, Ireland in 1916.^[1] He graduated from University College Dublin's School of Architecture in 1939,^[3] and the following year established an architectural practice in Cork city.^[4]

Murphy was influenced by both Scandinavian and American architecture,^[5] and his work featured complex surfaces as well as curtain wall facades. While the former is particularly present in his storefront designs, the latter international style is reflected in projects such as Thompson's Bakery and the Cork Distillers Company Bottling plant. Murphy's work include churches, factories, offices, housing and shopfronts, some of which employ varied and sometimes "eccentric" material palettes.^[6]

In 1956, Murphy designed West Cork's first modernist building, All saints Church in Drimoleague, and Cork city's first purpose-built office building 'Sutton House' in 1966. In 1968, Murphy was alarmed at the destruction and demolition of Cork City's built heritage and set up the Cork Preservation Society. In 1975, during the European Architectural Heritage Year, he was awarded the European Award for Architecture, the Europa Nostra Medal, by the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland for his restoration of Skiddy's Almshouse.^{[1] [7]}

Works

• Jenning's Soda Water Factory, Cork City (1949)^[8]
• Belmont Hospital, Ferrybank, Waterford (1950)
• Ballyphehane Convent, Cork City (1955)^[9]
• Drimoleague Church, West Cork (1956)^[10]
• Mayne's Pharmacy, Pembroke Street, Cork City (1960)^[11]
• Cork Distiller's Bottling Plant, Cork City (1964)^[12]
• Sutton House, Cork City (1965)^[13]
• Dale House, Leytenstone, London (1965)
• Thompson's Bakery, MacCurtain Street, Cork City (1966)^[14]
• Skiddy's Almshouse Restoration, Shandon Cork City (1975)^[15]

Publications

• Cork's Modern Architect: The Work of Frank Murphy (2019) by Conor English, published by the heritage council of Ireland and Cork City Council.

External links

• Archiseek.com entry - with descriptions of his buildings

Notes and References

1. Web site: Cork architect the unsung hero of modernism. 21 July 2018. irishexaminer.com . Irish Examiner.
2. Web site: Exhibition | Frank Murphy Exhibition . openhousecork.ie . 1 January 2020 .
3. Web site: UCD School of Architecture - Timeline. ucdarchitecture.ie . 1 January 2020 .
4. Web site: About Us . FMP Architects . fmp.ie . 1 January 2020 .
5. Web site: Cork architect led mid-20th century Cork design . Irish Examiner . irishexaminer.com . 20 December 2019 . 1 January 2020 .
6. Web site: The Cork Distillers Bottling Plant (1961-1964) . Architecture Ireland . https://web.archive.org/web/20191031180805/http://architectureireland.ie/the-cork-distillers-bottling-plant-1961-1964 . 31 October 2019 .
7. Web site: Follow in the footsteps of top Cork architects. 28 September 2019. irishexaminer.com . Irish Examiner.
8. Web site: 1949 – Jennings Soda Water Factory, Watercourse Road, Cork. Archiseek . 18 July 2018.
9. Web site: 1954 – Presentation Sisters Convent, Ballyphehane, Cork. Archiseek . 16 July 2018.
10. Web site: Drimoleague Church. FMP Architects . fmp.ie . 1 January 2020 .
11. Web site: Maynes Pharmacy . FMP Architects . fmp.ie . 1 January 2020.
12. Web site: 1964 – Irish Distillers Bottling Plant, North Mall, Cork. Archiseek . 17 July 2018.
13. Web site: 1967 – Gardner House, South Mall, Cork. Archiseek . 29 January 2019.
14. Web site: 1967 – Former Thompsons Bakery, MacCurtain Street, Cork. Archiseek . 29 January 2019.
15. Web site: Skiddys Almshouse. FMP Architects . fmp.ie . 1 January 2020 .