James Joyce tulip portrait

Wednesday 23 October 2012 Paul Schellekens, Ambassador of the Netherlands, planted the first bulbs together with local school children from Scoil Mobhi primary school, Glasnevin, Dublin and St Michael’s National School in Limerick (right). Mark Traynor, Director of the James Joyce Centre and the Ambassador of the Netherlands in Ireland, Paul Schellekens emphasised the importance of the presence of the James Joyce tulip portrait as a symbol of cooperation between our two nations. The Ambassador said in his speech that this “work of art […] will constitute a fusion of two symbols that represent our respective countries, Ireland and the Netherlands.” The portrait is a joint project by the National Botanic Gardens, the Embassy of the Netherlands, the James Joyce Centre in Dublin with the support of the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, the Irish Museums Trust, Beechill Bulbs from Co. Offaly, and Jac. Uittenbogaard & Zonen (JUB) from the Netherlands.
Overseen by Jan Guldenmond, former landscape architect of the Keukenhof flower bulb fields in the Netherlands and his assistant Nol van Ruiten, the planting took three days to complete. Some 17,000 grape hyacinth bulbs and 6,000 tulip bulbs make up the portrait. This is the first time this Dutch expertise has been brought to Ireland. The following tulip cultivars have been used Willemsoord (red and white), Eskiltuna & Baby Doll (yellow), Willem van Oranje (orange), Oranje Nassau (brown orange), David Terniers (lilac), Peach Blossom (rose) and Cardinal Mindszenty (white).