Tower of Now

Tower of Now, a new structure recently erected in Hall Ings in the centre of Bradford.  It was created by Pakistani born artist Saad Qureshi who moved to Bradford at the age of eight and later studied Art.  The tower is fifteen metres tall and incorporates architectural features from around the world.

Sophie Ryder Sculptures - Cartwright Hall

     This is one of a pair of large scale sculptures by artist Sophie Ryder currently on display at Cartwright Hall.  The sculptures are made from galvanized wire, lots and lots of it, formed into these huge mythical creatures.   Unusual, striking, and impressive.

East Coast Fishing Disaster

I've been away for a few days, up the East Coast to Berwick-upon-Tweed, also venturing over the border into Scotland and St Abbs where this picture was taken.  It's a bronze sculpture by Jill Watson and as you can see it depicts women and children looking out to sea.  It is one of a number of sculptures placed along this coastline to commemorate the East Coast Fishing Disaster of 1881, known as Black Friday, where a hurricane struck the coast causing the deaths of 189 fishermen at sea.  

Pavillion Sculpture

This unusual stainless steel sculpture stands on top of the pavilion which overlooks the new mirror pool in the town centre. I can't tell you who the artist is, or even the name of the work as there is no plaque, the grass is a clever idea though, it makes the pavilion roof into a small garden.

Wood Sculpture - St Ives Estate

This is one of a number of wood sculptures on a woodland walk at the St Ives Estate near Bingley. The 550 acre estate once belonged to the Ferrand family but is now run by Bradford Council.

Delius Sculpture

I was taking a look at the Delius Sculpture in Exchange Square the other day and I noticed that you could see a reflection of leaves on a nearby tree in the glass panels. The sculpture itself is based on a skeletal leaf.

City Park Sculpture

This unusual sculpture has recently been delivered to the site of the Bradford City Park. The park, when completed will feature a mirror pool, a hundred fountains and several sculptures by Wolfgang Buttress. This particular sculpture is already attracting quite a bit of comment from Bradfordians, both negative and positive comment. What do I think? I think I should wait until the project has been fully completed before making any judgement.

Camera Lucida - Tim Head

This sculpture stands in front of the National Media Museum in the centre of Bradford and is by artist Tim Head. It was commissioned by the museum with support from Bradford Metropolitan Council and the Yorkshire Arts Association. I find this sculpture quite difficult to photograph, this is probably my best effort so far. I don't usually mess about with the colours but I have tinted the picture blue and darkened the corners a little on this occasion.

Jamie Wardley - Charles Darwin Sculpture

   Following on from Tuesdays post, this is Jamie Wardley working on the Charles Darwin sand sculpture in Centenary Square in August 2009.  The sculpture, made from one hundred and twenty tons of sand stood around fifteen feet tall and was created to mark the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwins birth.

Jamie Wardley At The Bradford Urban Garden

     At first glance this looks like Jamie Wardley could be getting a ticket for drawing on the pavement, but that's not what is actually going on here.  Jamie is being directed by his assistant in marking out the drawing. The large tripod (not a tripod as it has four legs) is being used to somehow correct the perspective during marking out, so that when viewed from the position of the tripod the drawing does not recede into the distance.  The passing PCSO is taking a quick snap on his mobile phone to see if the theory actually works in practice. 
     Jamie is actually a sand and ice sculptor and made a huge sand sculpture of Charles Darwin in front of Bradford Town Hall a couple of years ago, I will try and post a picture of it in a day or two (I need to find the transparency and scan it). 
    

Hung Out To Dry - Marcus Levine

     A new sculpture has appeared in Lister Park by Local artist Marcus Levine.  The work is called Hung Out To Dry and consists of two nails standing around fifteen feet tall with a stainless steel panel suspended between them.  The panel has around twenty eight thousand nails driven into it to create the pattern that you can see in the picture.

Saltaire - World Heritage Weekend

     The village of Saltaire is celebrating world heritage day with special events in and around the village this weekend.  This demonstration of stone carving was held in Roberts Park by members of the West Riding Stonecarving Association.  I found it quite interesting to watch these craftsmen at work, the different types of stone apparently have their own distinctive qualities which make some types of stone harder to work with than others. It's also apparently a very therapeutic hobby, must give it a try sometime!

Makonde - Lister Park

     This bronze sculpture in Lister Park is by Halima Cassell and is named Makonde.  I have photographed it before in flat lighting but I prefer this version with the strong side lighting.  I had to crawl about on my hands and knees a bit to get the low angle , which meant funny looks from passers-by, but that doesn't bother me any more.