Another Place

"Another Place" is a piece of modern sculpture by Antony Gormley.

Now permanently erected on Crosby Beach, England, it was due to be moved to New York, United States in November 2006, but there was a controversial proposal to retain the work at Crosby. It was recently stated in the local paper, the "Crosby Herald", that they may stay for a decade, but at a meeting on March 7th 2007, Sefton Council accepted proposals that would allow the sculptures to be kept permanently at Crosby Beach. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/6428935.stm Gormley's statues stay out to sea] , BBC] [ [http://icseftonandwestlancs.icnetwork.co.uk/iccrosby/news/tm_headline=iron-men-to-stay-in-crosby%26method=full%26objectid=18722126%26siteid=60252-name_page.html Iron Men to stay in Crosby] , "Crosby Herald"]

Details

The sculpture consists of 100 cast iron figures which face out to sea, spread over a 2 mile (3.2 km) stretch of the beach. Each figure is 189 cm tall (nearly 6 feet 2½ inches) and weighs around 650 kg (over 1400 lb).

In common with most of Gormley's work, the figures are cast replicas of the artist's own body. As the tides ebb and flow, the figures are revealed and submerged by the sea. The figures were cast by Joseph and Jesse Siddons Foundry in West Bromwich.

"Another Place" was first exhibited on the beach of Cuxhaven, Germany in 1997 and after that in Stavanger in Norway and De Panne in Belgium.

Public reception in Crosby

Another Place is a subject of local controversy in Crosby. Some consider the statues to be "pornographic" due to the inclusion of a simplified penis on the statues, Fact|date=May 2007 whilst others see them as beautiful pieces of art which have brought increased tourism revenue to the local area. [ [http://arts.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1927013,00.html Gormley's iron men will have to go, planning committee rules] , "The Guardian"]

Originially the statues were due to be relocated in November 2006. Those who use the front for watersports voice the strongest resistance to the iron men staying, as the statues do pose a safety problem Fact|date=May 2007 - especially as the local marina is being closed to public use. While these sportsmen have a serious claim to getting rid of the statues, keeping them until 2008 will no doubt be beneficial for the economy of Crosby and Waterloo, Fact|date=May 2007 and if they stay it seems more likely a multi-million pound watersports centre will be built. Art lovers and local businesses are lobbying for the statues to stay. Gormley himself agrees with the proposal to keep the statues in Crosby, saying that the current location is "ideal". [ [http://www.guardian.co.uk/northerner/idx/0,,1932372,00.html Time waits for the cast-iron men] , "The Guardian"] The works, which had earlier been displayed in Germany, Norway and Belgium, became a major tourist attraction on Crosby Beach near Liverpool.

As of March 2007 permission was granted to have Another Place permanently installed at Crosby.Initially, coastguard authorities expressed safety fears, saying people could become stuck in soft sand and be cut off by the tide when viewing the statues up close.Fact|date=May 2007

Conservationists had also complained that bird-feeding areas had been compromised by the extra tourist traffic.Fact|date=May 2007

In October 2006, the local council refused permission for the statues to stay, prompting Gormley to criticise what he called Britain's "risk-averse culture." He said "When I have been down on the beach myself, the majority of people have been intrigued, amused, sometimes very moved," he said. [ [http://en.epochtimes.com/news/6-10-28/47418.html The Risk of Enjoying Art on the Shore] October 28 2007, Reuters via "The Epoch Times"]

Another Body Place Ltd, a body set up to campaign for the permanent installation, helped to convince the council to change its mind.

Graham Haywood, Chief Executive of Sefton Council, said in a statement "Despite some controversy, this internationally renowned artwork has aroused national and international public and media support." Saying that "The Iron Men have placed Crosby and Sefton firmly in the spotlight and the knock-on benefits of this should be felt for years to come." [ [http://www.sefton.gov.uk/Default.aspx?page=7218 Green Light For Iron Men] , Sefton Council press release]

The planning committee decided to move 16 of the statues back away from an area used by small sailing craft. Three others are being re-sited away from bird feeding areas. The work on the 16 started on July 16 2007 and the plan is to put them in storage and return them in 2008. The full cost is expected to be £194,000 which will be paid for by Another Place Ltd, with funding coming from sources including The Northern Way and Northwest Development Agency. [ [http://icseftonandwestlancs.icnetwork.co.uk/iccrosby/news/tm_headline=iron-men-are-on-the-move%26method=full%26objectid=19475981%26siteid=60252-name_page.html Iron Men are on the move] , July 19 2007, "Crosby Herald]

On the 14th Feb 2008, five of the statues were used in a costume design project by Edge Hill University students. This involved dressing the statues in various items of clothing replicating different costumes and periods, which were then removed as the tide came in.

Other works

Gormley has produced other works using similar life-size iron statues.

Time Horizon

A second set of the same 100 figures were cast in 2006 for a new installation called "Time Horizon" installed amongst a grove of olive trees at the Archaeological Park of Scolacium near Catanzaro in Calabria, Southern Italy. [ [http://www.intersezioni.eu/main.html Time Horizon] , Archaeological Park of Scolacium] Since the figures are set into the ground, facing a variety of directions, the effect of the piece is very different from that of "Another Place".

Event Horizon

Event Horizon consists of 31 statues placed on buildings around London.

Image gallery

References

External links

* One of the first photographs on [http://www.antonygormley.com/ Gormley's Flash-only web site] shows "Another Place" in Cuxhaven, and it is also included as item 350 in his List of Works.
* [http://www.antonygormley.co.uk www.AntonyGormley.co.uk Another Place] Also visit www.antonygormley.co.uk to find out more about Antony Gormley's work.
* [http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/features/story/0,11710,1512190,00.html "Guardian" article] on Another Place and Gormley
* [http://www.artinliverpool.com/blogarch/2005/07/crosby_another.html Art In Liverpool Review] of Another Place by Antony Gormley
* [http://icliverpool.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0100regionalnews/tm_objectid=17723597%26method=full%26siteid=50061-name_page.html Liverpool Echo] report on plans to retain Another Place at Crosby
* [http://d-sites.net/english/gormley.htm 'Anthony Gormley: the abortive rebirth of the slaves']