Musings from the Merse
Thursday, January 05, 2006
The art establishment in Berwick long envious of 'public art' in Newcastle and elsewhere further south such as Anthony Gormley's Angel of the North have decided that Berwick should follow suit. The proposal is to construct 'a Replica Walls Gate' 2 metres high in Marygate (the main drag) complete with two seven foot high figures-a man and a woman, one passing through the gate and the other 'to one side'This will be the beginning of an 'art trail' including similar figures on Berwick ramparts. The 'computer generated impression' in today's Berwickshire looks a bit like a tall young lady (7 foot remember) exiting from a new fangled public loo with a slightly taller young man waiting to go in. So it is presumably a unisex urinal. The edifice is 'generated' to be on the main pavement used by the marketeers on Wednesday and Saturdays and by pedestrians who have crossed the road to avoid WH Smut and sons. In response to some public criticism about this idea Berwick's Director of Regeneration explained 'These will be Berwick Charecters, they will grow on people and say something about where we have been and where we are going' A sort of perpetualBus timetable in Cor-Ten steel (as used for the A of theN) presumably? Actually a public toilet would be more useful although it would have to be less open plan than the Replica Walls Gate as present visualised.
Hutton Think Tank (Culture section) are hoping to attract funding for a piece of public art in Hutton to draw attention away from the long abandoned caravan near the playground which has the look of modern street art, 1960s style but is a bit tatty giving a poor image of our village. Some one has suggested a eight foot figure (no English 7 foot dwarves around here thankyou very much- is one message) waiting for the bus at the village bus shelter-distressed steel and rural bronze would be appropriate. The artifact would be entitled 'Never on a Sunday' which would say something about the quality and quantity of local public transport-the figure would convey the message of Johnny Villager who has no oppurtunity to know 'where we have been and where we are going' Not until mid morning Monday at any rate.
Hutton Think Tank (Culture section) are hoping to attract funding for a piece of public art in Hutton to draw attention away from the long abandoned caravan near the playground which has the look of modern street art, 1960s style but is a bit tatty giving a poor image of our village. Some one has suggested a eight foot figure (no English 7 foot dwarves around here thankyou very much- is one message) waiting for the bus at the village bus shelter-distressed steel and rural bronze would be appropriate. The artifact would be entitled 'Never on a Sunday' which would say something about the quality and quantity of local public transport-the figure would convey the message of Johnny Villager who has no oppurtunity to know 'where we have been and where we are going' Not until mid morning Monday at any rate.
Comments:
As for public art in Berwickshire:
As far as public art in Berwickshire I suggesta big v-sign with the comment 'no opinions please'; perhaps a statue of a wifie in headscarf with the motto: 'I kent his faither'. Perhaps an eternal flame, say a permanently burning cross, just to make all the minorities know where they are.
All the best
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As far as public art in Berwickshire I suggesta big v-sign with the comment 'no opinions please'; perhaps a statue of a wifie in headscarf with the motto: 'I kent his faither'. Perhaps an eternal flame, say a permanently burning cross, just to make all the minorities know where they are.
All the best
# posted by 
: 1:55 PM
: 1:55 PM