Art in the City of London streets
You do not have to be rich to enjoy art in the City of London and if you look hard enough you will see that the streets are a treasure trove of creativity. I am often found pounding the pavements in the City and the art that has been on display recently has been fun to look at so I thought I would share it with you.
When I first saw the sculpture below it reminded me of a giant coloured peanut! It is by Jean-Luc Moulène, is called 'Body' and is located in the Undershaft, EC3 area. It pays tribute to the automobile as sculpture within the urban landscape and was produced at the Renault Factory. This sculpture is comprised of twelve segments that are painted in gradations of the three primary colours that eventually fade into white.
The sculptures below can be found under the Leadenhall Building and at 1 Great St Helen's. They are by Thomas J Price and are called "Numen (Shifting Votive One & Two)" and "Numen (Shifting Votive Three)". These creations are large cast aluminium heads which have been placed on marble columns so they can be viewed at eye level. I found them striking to look at and they reminded me of modern day Greek mythical statues.
"Crocodylius Philodendrus" is the name given to the sculpture below by Nancy Rubins and can be found at 1 Undershaft, EC3. It is made of cast iron, bronze, brass, stainless steel, aluminium, armature and stainless steel wire cable. It is a group of animals tangled together and every time I walk past it I spot something that I previously missed.
There is a neon sculpture hanging from the ceiling of Leadenhall Market called "I'm Staying" and it was created by Shaun C. Badham. Another neon sculpture by Tracey Emin RA is in the passageway connecting Bury Court & Bury Street and says, "Your Lips Moved Across My Face".
Gabriel Lester created the poster changer sculpture below and called it "The Adventurer". The pictures change frequently, are very angular and I wonder if the style has been influenced by art deco. The Adventurer is one of my favourites and is located in Bury Court, EC3.
I use Fenchurch Street station every day and was surprised to be greeted by what reminded me of a green alien made out of play dough! It is called "Synapsid", is by Karen Tang and made out of epoxy, fibreglass, paint, Styrofoam, timber and steel (I'm convinced play dough should be in there somewhere!). It is described as being a "vivid, coloured sculpture that morphs between abstract, alien and animal forms".
I love walking through Cunnard Place and there is currently a sculpture called 'UNIVRS' there, it is by Michail Pirgelis and is made of aluminium, titanium and lacquer.
Mitre Square is currently home to "Climb" by Juliana Cerqueira Leite. The sculpture is an obelisk made inside a tall wooden column filled with nearly three tons of wet clay. The artist started at the base of this structure and dug her way upwards through the middle of the material, leaving a vertical tunnel behind her. The clay inside had imprints from her hands, knees, feet and elbows and once she reached the top of this clay column she cast it in a mixture of plaster and acrylic. The cast turned the negative space left by her climbing actions into a shape that was then excavated out from underneath the remaining clay. This sculpture has been likened to a photograph being developed from a film negative.
Heneage Lane has been turned into a riot of colour as it is now home to "Sari Garden" by Clare Jarrett (see below).
The sculpture below is by David Annesley, is called "Untitled" and made out of painted aluminium. This piece can be found in St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate Churchyard.
Richard Rome created the sculpture below using galvanised and waxed steel, he named it "Pepper Rock" and it is located on the corner of Bishopsgate and Wormwood Street.
A column of coloured tiles is outside the front of the Willis Building in Lime Street, it is called Stack Blues and is by Sean Scully RA. It is based on the coming together of land and sea and how the two connect.
I admit that not all of the sculptures are my 'cup of tea', but when I read about the meaning behind them it made me reassess my opinion. I greatly admire the skill, thought and hard work that went into creating these thought provoking pieces so bravo to all of the artists! The art is fun to view, thought provoking and best of all free for everyone to see! I highly suggest a walk around the City, you never know what you will find!