Two Working Men, Bronze sculpture at Cork County Hall, Ireland

Two Working Men is a bronze sculpture standing outside Cork County Hall that depicts two human figures of different heights. One figure stands with hands on hips while the other holds hands behind the back, and these contrasting poses give the work its distinctive character.

Oisín Kelly received the commission in 1966, the year his Children of Lir was unveiled in Dublin, and took three years to make the statues. They were intended for Liberty Hall, headquarters of the SIPTU trade union, but the union judged them a traffic hazard there. Unveiled instead outside Cork County Hall in 1969, they were removed during the building's redevelopment and replaced in 2006.

The local community calls the figures Cha and Miah, names drawn from characters in Hall's Pictorial Weekly, a television show that was popular in Cork. This informal naming shows how deeply the work has become part of daily local conversation.

The sculpture stands directly outside Cork County Hall and is easily accessible to visitors walking by or exploring the nearby public spaces. The open setting allows you to view the detailed bronze craftsmanship and artistic representation from different angles.

The statues were commissioned in 1966 for Liberty Hall in Dublin, then Ireland's tallest building and SIPTU's headquarters, but the union judged them a traffic hazard. Architect Desmond Rea O'Kelly later called their absence from Liberty Hall a great regret. They were instead unveiled at Cork County Hall in 1969, and were removed during its redevelopment before being replaced in 2006.