A 17 tonne bull and 7 tonne ploughman have been delivered to the new Nenagh bypass and will be on permanent exhibition for motorists travelling on this stretch of the Limerick-Dublin road.
Colin Grehan, a 28-year-old sculptor from Peterswell, Co Galway, said he carved the Kilkenny limestone pieces from two blocks, weighing 28 tonnes and 13 tonnes respectively, using a pneumatic hammer and tungsten-tipped chisels.
He got his inspiration from the origins of agriculture in the area. "I looked at the landscape here around north Tipperary thinking it has come about because of 7,500 years of agriculture. The pieces form a single work with a ploughing theme stretching across the roadway.
"There are invisible linkages between them essentially broken by the road. There is a tiny message in that too."
Mr Grehan trained in the Limerick College of Art and Design and under Tipperary sculptor Richard O'Meara. Under the Per Cent for Art Scheme, by which up to 1 per cent of construction project costs can be diverted to public art, North Tipperary County Council received 16 entries to the competition. From a shortlist of four entries, Mr Grehan's was chosen.
He developed the £40,000 sculpture over 16 months and it is his most ambitious work to date. Over the next week, he will be putting the final touches to it on site.
This will include the addition of a piece in stainless steel which shows the ploughman's legs merging into ploughshares. He also has a commission from Navan UDC for another bull sculpture for "a market town with a history of cattle dealing".
His style is to use stocky, gnarled figures which seem to be full of strength. "I love aspects of force in work, the flow of energy. I love when it comes through in work."
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Readers who wish to contact Eibhir Mulqueen can leave messages by dialling (01) 670- 7711, extension 6544 or email emulqueen@irish-times.ie