The People Have No Voice 03/04

by L. Coss

A defining aspect for many famous capital cities, is it’s landmarks which express it’s heritage, culture and social influence. New York has it’s Empire State, Paris it’s Eiffel Tower and Rome it’s Coliseum, soon in London’s Trafalgar Square we could have a car covered in bird excrement or a toy skyscraper made out of Meccano.
The reason for these possible aberrations is the desire to place a new sculpture on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square which currently remains vacant. The Fourth Plinth, located in the north west corner of the square, opposite the National Gallery's Sainsbury Wing, was originally designed by Sir Charles Barry and was built in 1841.
The intended plan was to place an equestrian sculpture on the plinth, but insufficient funds meant the plinth remained empty.
Now in the new Millennium the desire is to place a sculpture on the plinth to fill the current void. The public have been invited to view the artists’ proposals in the National Gallery, or online at www.fourthplinth.co.uk, and make their views known. Whilst the public can vote for their favourite entry, their views ultimately will not matter as the final say rests with The Fourth Plinth Commissioning Group

Maybe they fear that the public will voice displeasure at the proposed works of ‘Art’ that threaten to despoil such a famous area of London.

The Proposals

Chris Burden
A toy skyscraper made from reproduced stainless steel Erector parts, that will no doubt come tumbling down as soon as the first bunch of drunken revelers try to scale the damn thing. It may also possibly affect really sensitive Americans who will immediately draw comparisons with the Twin Towers. But in a setting that has visual scope why would you dream of placing an eyesore such as this. The only way it should be displayed is with something draped over the structure. Burden claims that his work “will spark a conversation about all structural, economic, safety and aesthetic issues involved in building structures that push towards the heavens”…I believe the debate it will spark is ‘Why?’.

Sokari Douglas Camp
A steel sculpture that depicts people as heroes and that acknowledges free speech and the right to protest as being a duty and a right we should continue to cherish. People may think it might jar with the other statues residing in the Square, which all have military associations, or maybe it could be seen as the perfect contrast. Probably the least offensive of all the proposals, it certainly has more of a chance of fitting in with the other statues. Ordinary people (to quote the artist) may also prefer it’s traditional look…and compared to the other entries the sculpture is less pretentious.

Stefan Gec
War…what is it good for…well apparently making a couple of wooden missiles (materials used oak, paint, plastic, stainless steel and varnish) and plonking them in Trafalgar Square. Gec sprouts some nonsense about how “The association implicit in the use of wood for Mannequin's construction allows wider readings to emerge that go beyond the work's physical form”…why is it that artists have to talk such rubbish, is it because they want to confuse the public and therefore elevate their work beyond the common man. They somehow feel that unless a work has some ‘deeper meaner’ they can’t convince people to take them seriously. Some artists really are up themselves, which is were these two missiles should be headed.

Sarah Lucas
Great… the best thing she could come up with was a car covered in bird shit, to which Lucas claims “Over the time of the installation in Trafalgar Square, the local pigeons will help the sculpture to organically develop” …Perhaps she underestimates the pigeons?
In the opposite corner she can complete the set by displaying the shell of a burnt out car dumped by joy riders. I appreciate that there may be a very humorous reason for this creation, but is it really something we want as a tourist attraction?. In fact I have a
friend who has a car exactly like this, maybe they should sell it for loads of money, because obviously it’s a piece of art in the making.

Marc Quinn
Whilst this sculpture may shock some, I actually quite like it’s boldness. And if people can say that the Venus De Milo is acceptable then Quinn’s work should certainly be judged in a similar way. Quinn’s white marble sculpture depicts Alison Lapper when she was eight and a half months pregnant, and suggests that “In the past, heroes such as Nelson conquered the outside world. Now it seems to me they conquer their own circumstances and the prejudices of others, and I believe that Alison's portrait will symbolise this”. It would also compliment Nelsons statue and would bring a feminine presence to offset the other triumphant male statues that adorn Trafalgar Square. Quinn also feels that Alison’s statue would represent feminine heroism and the possibilities of the future.

Thomas Schutte
The last proposal is Hotel for the Birds made out of Perspex. It bears more resemblance to a clothes horse than a piece of architecture… but Schutte believes “it will become part of the important historical buildings all around Trafalgar Square. Hotel for the Birds is sculpture, model and architecture all in one. It is also, at the same time, a commentary on the present”. Again where do some artists get off. Pigeons will no doubt have plenty of fun with this attraction, but I wouldn’t expect this to still be standing for too long, if it does eventually end up as the chosen one.

One last personal thought:
Surely what should occupy the Fourth Plinth must be something that will have a lasting presence and not just be a fleeting visitor. It should be something that people enjoy to look at and adds a lasting impression to visitors, much as the Angel of the North does near Newcastle.
I’m not sure if any of the above proposals meet such criteria, and although people have been invited to vote, ultimately the decision will not be made by the very people it is for.
This whole Fourth Plinth project should be about art being inclusive, but again those in positions of influence deem the members of the public as not being up to the task. I don’t know what’s more insulting, their arrogance or the sculpture that eventually wins.