Stokies reading this post will have noticed the ridiculous load of scrap that has been dumped on the main road from the A500 to Hanley town. I have been told (by the people who commissioned it) that this is actually a piece of art that is well loved and appreciated by the local community. Well, I happen to know that this £175,000 piece of nonsense is universally despised, by locals and by a number of people who have visited our fair city recently and who have raised this subject with me.I have made a few tentative enquiries with those responsible for this 'thing' and they tell me it was intended that this 'art' was to project a positive image of Stoke on Trent and its heritage.
I have no objection, in fact am fully supportive of works of art that promote our city and culture - the point here is that this stainless steel shape does not achieve that goal.
The fact is that it's an abstract nonsense that defies analysis, people looking at this shape cannot see any meaning in it! I believe that this particular style of abstract is destructive to our city and our culture. This 'work' presents components of our heritage (a cog, a pot, a tree?) but not in way that we can recognise or understand, these components seem unstable, falling down and unreal, perched upon unstable and twisted plinths that convey an uneasiness. Such a 'work' could never therefore support and pay tribute to our local industrial heritage - only to present that heritage in an uncertain and negative way (or just be ignored), and I refuse to believe that the people who designed this work in any way holds our working traditions in high esteem.
I suppose we must also consider the fact that this monstrosity was paid for by 106 monies acrued from nearby commercial developments approximately four years ago, it was about the same time that the council was closing down our old folks homes (they closed six). As far as I'm concerned I would far prefere to see our elderly citizens catered for before seeing rubbish abstract art-works like the one above.
one would think that if stoke were to celebrate its heritage then the art should first and foremost be made from ceramic. second, as its public art it should make sense to the public and inspire them. these lumps don't inspire anyone except the pigeons who feel inspired to use them as lavatories.
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