Anke: Royal Tunbridge Wells

The Spectator Exhibition

There is a new exhibition on at the Art Gallery to coincide with the the Olympics this summer. As the name suggests though, it's more about the spectators than the sport.

Tonight (Friday) was the launch night and it was also the prize-giving ceremony for the lucky winners of the competition that ran before the exhibition. Myself, Jamie and Jo from the Museum, and Glen from The Courier, all gathered together a few weeks ago to choose the lucky winner and amazingly we were unanimous. You can see their winning entry on the Wall of Fans gallery when you visit.

...including some by the great Martin Parr

I really encourage you to pay this exhibition a visit, there are some wonderful photographs on display, including some by the great Martin Parr. There are also some intriguing sports-related items donated by other museums and local residents for you to enjoy. If the kids get to restless whilst you look around there is also Wii Sports to play with.

When you stop by please take a few moments to read the intro boards scattered around because one of them is mine, and to encourage you to pop along I have reprinted a small fragment of my piece here below:

If there is one name in the world of photography that will polarise opinion more than any other, it’s Martin Parr.
Until a year or so ago the photographic pedant inside me really didn’t appreciate his images, I couldn’t see past the technical imperfections. But I was missing the point. It’s not until I really studied his work that I discovered that his primary objective is capturing moments; he is interested in people and the minutiae of their lives, and he always does it with a healthy dose of affectionate humour.
The images chosen for this exhibition are great examples of his work and perfectly embody what it’s like to be a spectator. Stand in front of these photographs for a few minutes and soak up the emotion emanating from the sports fans. Feel their passion, feel their pain.

All in all a really great exhibition that has obviously taken a lot of hard work to put together and is really well worth you all taking a half an hour out of your day to go along and visit. Let me know what you think when you do.

Click here to see some photographs from the opening night.

Community Curators

Finally, after almost two weeks of the flu, I can do things again. So, I decided that the first stop should be the art gallery to see the latest exhibition I had missed since it opened in March.

Community Curators sees three professional artists working alongside three local community groups to create lovely works of art. These environmentally-themed works have all been created in the past few months. I particularly liked the tree of birds. Go on, pop in on your way past at lunchtime, we should all be using our local gallery and museum more often.

Art on the Industrial Estate

With the results from the first artistic consultation coming up very soon. We now look at the second phase of the local art installations.

Concept art proposal by Animate Arts. Image courtesy of Animate Arts.

The site selected for the new work is the entrance to the cycle path where it leaves Dowding Way at the North Farm Industrial Estate, and runs up to Barnetts Wood nature reserve.

The first of these is from a collective of artists called Animate Arts. Their proposal is to work with the Friends of Barnetts Wood nature reserve and a local primary school to make a metal "tree arch". It's a really nice piece of work and I like the fact they are getting local schoolchildren involved. My only suggestion, and one I think would mean this would win, would be to lose the current ugly Health and Safety barriers and integrate the same thing into the sculpture. As it stands with the barriers in place it just doesn't work. Get these barriers into the work somehow and this would really make a nice entranceway.

3 out of 10 with barriers.
8 out of 10 without barriers.

Joseph Hillier's concept really rocks my socks. His proposal is to make a steel figure made up from circular and triangular components. These components represent the natural and manufactured elements of life which cross over at the site.

Concept art proposal by Joseph Hillier. Image courtesy of Joseph Hillier.

The artist says that "Tunbridge Wells is famed for the production of Tunbridge Ware, a version of decorative wood marquetry." and this is his modern take on that skill.

"The Parquetry and the crafts used in putting together the Tunbridge Ware (once produced in Tunbridge Wells) is a fascinating departure point for this piece. The circular dispersing particles, which spread more the higher we rise up the figure serves to summon a sense of evaporating water and release, a joyous and poignant defiance of gravity."

Beautiful to look at, will age beautifully, a fitting and striking piece. This has to be the winner. I would go as far as to say that I would like many more of these dotted around our town centre. how about a series of them all around town, perhaps each with a special name and number so it turns into a sort of tourist trail? Can we get a bulk discount Joseph?

10 out of 10

Tony Stallard had a proposal in the last consultation and I really wasn't that impressed, and I'm afraid this new proposal, called Flowers, is nothing short of laughable. Is someone putting these in as joke or something? I mean just look at it. It looks like a vandalised lamppost.

Concept art proposal by Tony Stallard. Image courtesy of Tony Stallard.

Apparently this is supposed to be a direct reference to the natural flowers of the area particularly the ‘Broom’ flower which gives High Brooms its name. If there was about 100 of them in differing heights then you may have good pitch but to me, from a distance, this looks like a green post with a yellow carrier bag tied on top of it. I don't think even the local foxes would use it as a marker post. So ridiculously awful I can't possibly imagine anyone would vote for it.

0 out of 10 (if I only I could give minus figures)

You can let me know what you think in the comments below and also on the official consultation page.

World Exclusive Reveal

Mrs Anke insisted that I post a little link to her blog post today, for she has an Exclusive artistic unveiling. We paid a visit to great artist, Loiuse Giblin, who is sculpting the bodies of some famous Olympians. It's well worth a read so pop on over now.

A small section of the big reveal.

So, as promised, click to go and read about Louise Giblin and her Olympians.

The Art of Wall Art

Whilst you are waiting for your train have you ever stopped to admire the painting on the wall? I'm not talking about the hilarious limerick on the wall above the urinals but rather the impressive 100ft long mural that adorns half of Platform 2.

A small section of the giant mural. Click it to see more photos.

As a bit of fun I've been participating with other photographers in a 52-week photography project, each week having a different topic. Last week the subject was "Wall Art."

Now, this being Tunbridge Wells, there isn't too much wall art as I would think of it hanging around. Yes we do have some small pieces about the place, but I was looking for something substantial. Then it hit me. The train station! Not literally of course.

I popped down to the station to ask if I could take some photos. Normally, in any usual railway station, this would cause alarm bells to ring and questions to be asked. But, on this occasion, the very pleasant staff were only too happy to let me wander about and snap away to my hearts content.

A small section of the giant mural. Click it to see more photos.

The giant artwork was painted by six artists over a month and a half in the Spring of 1989. The artists were Brain Barnes, Aileen Barnes, Glenn Barnes, Steve Lobb, Carol Kenna, and Neil Torbett. Brian Barnes MBE is an acclaimed artist well known for his public murals with several large important pieces in South London.

A member of staff at the station who was there at the time told me our mural was painted "just to brighten the place up" and cost an amazing £40,000 to paint (an even more astonishing £100,000 in today's money).

Click to see some more photos of the panels of the mural.

Do you think our town could do with some more murals? Maybe brighten up a few bare walls? I think the bridge over the station itself could do with a nice scene on it, it would look really nice as drivers descended Grove Hill Road, wouldn't it? Where would you like one painted?