Posted:
3:29 PM December 16, 2021
The shortlist of designs from a series of works of art to be placed along a new £ 500,000 footpath around Norfolk has been revealed – and the public can help choose which ones are selected.
The Norfolk Way Art Trail aims to get people to visit the county during the low season from October to March and will feature large-scale sculptures installed at four locations around Norfolk.
The project is funded with European Union money, although the track will not open until almost two years after the UK leaves the EU. The cash was already allocated before Brexit.
Artists were invited to submit striking sculptures and artwork for four points on the 250-mile trail – and organizers received more than 200 submissions.
These ideas were reduced to a shortlist for locations, at Diss Mere, Reedham Ferry Inn, Boal Quay in King’s Lynn and on the North Walsham and Dilham Canals.
Concept designs were announced on www.norfolkwayarttrail.co.uk where Norfolk County Council invites people to share their opinions by ‘liking’ and ‘promoting’ the artwork.
These will be taken into account by the EXPERIENCE Norfolk Steering Group, which will make the final decisions.
Simon Vaughan, Director of Creative Giants, commissioned by County Hall to manage the project, said: “We were blown away to receive over 200 artwork submissions and the quality of submissions was incredibly high.
“We can’t wait to see which pieces will be chosen for the Norfolk Way Art Trail.”
Plans for a fifth sculpture at Great Yarmouth Market Place have been put on hold.
BOAL QUAY
Feathership by Annabel McCourt and Adrian Riley
Feathership is based on the legend of the Brotherhood of the Gray Goose Feather – that people wearing a split gray goose quill and uttering a secret word might ask for help.
IRIS – The Messenger by Mathias Gmachl and Roosa Tulvio
A six-meter platform, lit by lights from the nine-meter-high sculpture above, with concrete tiles containing messages from the residents of King’s Lynn
Plain Sight by Matt Wreglesworth
The artwork creates an environment for the mix of natural and artificial light on a central column adorned with tiles designed by residents of King’s Lynn and Norfolk.
Rainbow beacon by Bits to Atoms (Guillaume Crédoz)
Floating a few meters above the ground, the solar lantern lights up when the brightness decreases.
THANK YOU
Creativity, Discovery and Inclusion Playground by Clarke Reynolds
The visually impaired artist’s interactive design uses braille dots for a course that tells the tale of the Diss Mere monster, inspired by stories of a giant catfish in the waters.
Water gates by Henry Driver
Four steel sculptures would act as digital portals into the microscopic ecosystem of zooplankton and phytoplankton found in the simple.
Kaitlin Ferguson’s Tunnel Through Time
The work of the Norwich University of the Arts graduate explores the notion of “deep time” and the 4.5 billion year history of the planet.
Herd by Toysstudio
Flock is inspired by the flocking behavior of flocks of birds, schools of fish and eel swarms synonymous with the Mere and the nearby Waveney River.
DILHAM CHANNEL
Shelter – Word in the Wind by Jim Bond
A raised steel structure with articulated fins that move in the breeze like reeds in the wind. Each section is inscribed in the written memory of a visitor to the channel.
Canal (L) by Panisa Jermhans
The idea is to express the identity of North Walsham and Dilham Canal with its landscape personality, reflecting industrial heritage and connecting to engineering as a profession.
Prism by Studio Sabine Marcelis
The monolith with colored mirror panels seems to float on the canal, activated by its environment and the seasons.
REEDHAM FERRY
Iron Reef by Maetherea Cristina Morbi + Aurora Destro
Iron Reef celebrates the historical and ecological heritage of Reedham Ferry Inn and Norfolk.
Solaris by James Tunnard
Solaris will be a large and beautiful solar powered light, with a stained glass design inspired by the colors of the local environment and wildlife.
Colony by Grace Pappas + KitMapper
Colony will be a set of six flute-shaped sculptures set back from the banks of the Yare River, activated by tidal forces and water disturbances.
The Spectators of Margaux Carpentier
An installation composed of mystical creatures inspired by local fauna, mythology and history.