ART installations are heading to a town near you.
The ‘Our Spaces’ project will see a series of commissioned installations aimed at helping reinvigorate public places in towns across the county.
They include:
- Leamington – ‘Down by the river’ by north Warwickshire artist Spencer Jenkins – a sculpture close to the River Leam and opposite the Spa Centre.
- Rugby – ‘Rugby Butter Stones’ by Architects Studio MUTT – a ‘micro’ park on Rugby High Street, meant as a meeting point, a place to socialise and rest with benches and planting.
- Stratford – ‘We Shadows’ by Ruby Road Productions – a structure on Stratford Recreation Ground which invites young people to lie, sit and dream.
Warwickshire County Council (WCC) have been working with place curators, Creative Giants, and specialist art fabricators, Factory Settings to design and deliver an installation for each place.
Simon Vaughan from Creative Giants said: “Smaller fledgling artists can find it difficult to break into public realm work due to the complexities of designing and building works for these spaces so the structure of this project has enabled us to bring forward some really strong but less experienced creatives.
WCC economy spokesman Coun Martin Watson explained the role of the project.
He said: “Art and culture play an increasingly key role in the vitality and vibrancy of our places, affecting how that place defines itself and is seen by others.
“The aim of this exciting initiative is to help create that sense of place, and ultimately encourage more use of these places which is a key part of the County Council’s multi-pronged strategy to support economic recovery.”
The project is being funded with £194,000 from the Government’s Getting Building Fund through the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership, and £150,000 from WCC’s Place Shaping Fund.
The installations are expected to be in place for up to four years but could remain in place longer.
Visit www.warwickshire.gov.uk/ourspaces for further details.
