Chris Marshall submission

Deptford Park Commission: Concept Proposal for Deptford Pink Sculpture

The Deptford Park commission offers a hugely attractive, creative and challenging opportunity. Much of my creative output has focussed on the environment of Lewisham and Deptford. Its rich history, diverse population and built environment provide a never ending source of stimuli.

Deptford Park is a small, intimate and essential green space. It deserves an artwork that respects this and is genuinely imbibed with a caring and sympathetic approach. To achieve the essentials for this important commission there are initial points of focus for the proposed artwork.

• An artwork that enhances and stimulates peoples everyday lives, for the individual and the community


• Public art that is beautiful, significant and awe-inspiring


• An artwork becoming a focal point that people will want to return to, a focus that gives a sense of place, time and meaningful presence


• An artwork that is sensitive, subtle and poignant


• An artwork that belongs and is a part of, along with enhancing, the identity of its surroundings.

Proposal outline
“A meadow flower the ‘caryophyllus pratensis’ was named by old botanists the Deptford pink because of the abundance in which it grew in the fields here”.
London County Council, Dedication to the Public of Deptford Park by Dr.W.J.Collins, J.P, D.L., Chairman of the Council, On Whit-Monday, 7th June 1897.

The Deptford pink provides the focus for the proposal, and specifically a ‘field’ of Deptford Pinks. The Pink, formed a small but essential part of the history of the park. Like many flora and fauna species, it has many historical connections. eg. It was a popular buttonhole carnation in Victorian times.

• The pink or Gillyflower has many connections to literature eg. Chaucer and Shakespeare


• It has many symbolic attributes pertaining to eg. the flesh of Christ and a celebration of purity


• It is a symbolic flower of greetings, welcoming, friendship and betrothal


• It is a flower of celebration (coronation)

Chris Marshall
Deptford Pink Sculpture
Dimensions: Ht 4000mm x W 1000mm x D 800mm
The sculpture is a permanent artwork celebrating a field of Deptford Pinks.

It can be viewed from all sides and provides a point of rest for the surrounding seating. It will be a focal point providing a meeting place and a jewel like monolith when viewed through the parks entrance and avenue. The sculpture will behave like stained glass, constantly changing, reminiscent of a field of pink flowers. It will effuse warmth, gentleness and optimism. The sculpture will be internally illuminated at night with a soft glowing light.

The sculpture will be fabricated from welded mild steel and clear, cast glass. The steel framework houses the cast glass sections. The steel grid framework will be welded in four sections hot zinc galvanised, and will be coated with micaceous iron oxide paint. (dark grey). The sculpture will be hollow with an acrylic sheet top.

© Chris Marshall 2008

Chris Marshall
Glass Sample for Deptford Pink Sculpture

Photo shows rough test prototype. Colour and shape will be refined.

Each cast glass unit will be encased by and locked into the steel grid. The glass units will be hand cast, with the pink flower image trapped between the poured layers. Each unit will be different and vary in colour and texture. They will be cast at the National Glass Centre Sunderland. Numerous ‘spares’ will be cast for replacements in case of damage. The moulds will allow for infinite numbers to be produced. The pink colour is permanent.

Dimensions of glass units: 100 mm x 100mm x 25 mm

Ekkehard Altenburger submission

Deptford Park Sculpture Proposal

I am delighted to have been given the chance to put forward a proposal for a site-specific sculpture in Deptford Park.

I have lived and worked in the borough of Lewisham for over ten years and am pleased to have the opportunity to suggest an artwork for a local park I am familiar with.

Deptford has historically always been a place of production, manufacturing and innovation. Its favourable position along the river Thames provided Deptford with a steep shore for larger vessels to land, initially surrounded by marshland, it soon became a place where “things were produced”.

From shipbuilding to manufacturing and in more recent years to the production of art and culture, Deptford always had an entrepreneurial spirit and this has led to many different and diverse items being produced here over the centuries.

This tradition of using ones ingenuity, craft and skill was the main inspiration for the design of my sculpture proposal. I wanted the work to represent those people who, for generations have lived and worked in the area and subsequently used the areas green parks for recreation and leisure.

HEPHAESTUS
The Ancient Greek deity, son of Zeus and Hera. (See appendix) Artisan, inventor and “maker of things” , Hephaestus seemed to be the obvious choice for a title for this sculpture, as this mythical Greek deity so much represents what Deptford and its people past and present represent.

The sculpture first and foremost needed a strong physical presence in the avenue / entrance to the park but must be sensitive enough not to overwhelm the space.

I believe scale is absolutely vital to this project; the work has to be of “human scale”, something that is part of us rather than an object to be looked at. Parks are places where people physically engage with their surroundings, and the sculpture with its tactile surface invites visitors to the park to physically engage with their surroundings.

The sculpture / fountain that initially stood at this place fulfilled this aim and my sculpture can both provide a bridge into the physical world as well as a signifier to a park (and an area) that has long been neglected.

The sculpture needed a “man made look”; it should be clear from the start that this work has been made through a sophisticated engineering process. Hence I decided to “create a block from scratch”, which means the initial carving block is produced in stacking (using epoxy resin) up layers of 2 different kinds of granite, a silver grey granite and a black granite. This “stacked up block” will provide the carving source, carving itself is still a “hands on” process, combining the two will manifest itself in a beautiful sculpture that somewhat captures the spirit of this area.
The sculpture will have a very smooth surface (honed) with its edges slightly rounded it will inevitably invite people to touch and interact with it. The work is set “off centre” to the plinth, which can be used as a seating area too.

Reference: Henry Moore Recumbent Figure
3 layers of Green Hornton Stone 1938

For the first time, I decided to use a base as an integral part of the sculpture, here, I use silver grey granite with a flamed surface and strongly rounded edges to give the circular base a “boulder in a stream” like character.

The sculpture in total should have an approximate height of about 2.1 meters (ca. 7ft); anything larger will be overwhelming and intrusive to the nature of the park.

HEPHAESTUS will give the site a significant sculptural element and a physical point that will leave a legacy for Deptford Park but furthermore will leave a timeless work of art that will become a significant feature that represents the inherent characteristics of this site and its people.

Technical details and schedule
Over the past decade I have produced many private and public artworks on similar or larger scale. As for the foundations, the existing plinth will not be safe to use and at this stage I suggest a 2-strip foundation to support the base. I estimate the total weight of sculpture and base to be in the area of 4.5 tons. Fixings will be in stainless steel; all resins used are UV resistant.

Both granites that I propose to use are of excellent quality and have been used widely in all aspects of the building industry as well as a popular sculptural material. Over the past few years I have established good working relationships with quarries/ supplier and work could start immediately once contracts have been agreed.

Assembly and rough pre-cutting will be executed in the granite factory in Portugal; the actual carving of the sculpture will be done in my studio at APT. I estimate the production time to be around 3 months.

The implementation of the foundations will run parallel to the production of the sculpture. As stated above, I have established good working relations with concrete manufacturers, haulage companies and structural engineers if needed.

Maintenance
Granite is an extremely durable and hardwearing material that can withstand pretty much anything. The surface will hardly weather and in the unfortunate case of vandalism, very robust cleaning procedures can be applied. The sculpture itself is maintenance free.

Appendix
Constructions
Hephaestus made some extraordinary constructions. He gave King Aeetes the brazen-footed
bulls that puffed fire from their mouths. He also wrought the famous Neclace of Harmonia and
he made a bed forged of gold, in which Helius (the Sun) is carried in sleep. Hephaestus also
constructed Oenopion’s underground house; and when Heracles 1did not know how to drive
the Stymphalian Birds from the wood, Athena gave him brazen castanets to scare them with,
which she had received from Hephaestus.

Remarkable objects
Hephaestus also made a sceptre for Zeus , others have shown bowls, and chests, falsified
necklaces, and even temples, saying that Hephaestus had created them. But Hephaestus gave a golden breastplate to Heracles, and he also made Archilles’ new armour, when he laid aside his wrath and decided to return to the fight at Troy. When Archilles killed Asteropaeus, grandson of the river Axius, the river god rushed at him but Hephaestus dried up his streams with a powerful flame.

Ekkehard Altenburger, June 2008

Heather Burrell's submission

PROJECT: Deptford Park Art Installation 2008
Artist: Heather Burrell

Proposal Development:
BLUE IRIDESCENCE . a title descriptive of the natural shimmering of blue often symbolic of a life core. It is also inherent in forged steel.

With a view to creating a large scale sculpture for Deptford Park, I have concentrated on three elements for inspiration and direction. The natural form that has evolved through this development is reminiscent of a plant ready to burst into bloom, it.s appearance also similar to a cluster of mussel shells and yet there is another aspect to it, almost bird like with layers of abstract feathers overlapping one another.

One of the significant features of this piece is in the attention to the finish. The steel is given an iridescent blue coating that is built up with layers of lacquer. The internal areas of each section will be highly lacquered to give a lasting luster whilst the outer layers will have a more subtle tone to compliment this detail.

To create this robust piece, I would use heavy gauge 10mm steel plate that is laser cut to elliptical templates in varying sizes and pressed into gentle curves. These curved forms would then be arranged into an upwardly flowering spiral as they are welded securely together.

Project details:

• The sculpture would be 3m high x 1.6m diameter at its widest point. It would be constructed to incorporate a circular plinth measuring 300mm high x 1600mm diameter



• The total height of installation would be 3.3m



• Circular plinth would be made from reinforced concrete mixed with Portland cement for a polished stone finish



• Foundations for the sculpture would need to be 1m deep x 1m diameter



• The timescale for the fabrication of this piece would take 7 weeks



• The steel will be galvanized for sustainability



• The iridescent blue would be applied to internal areas with a natural blue for the external finish



• Foundations, plinth and installation would take a further week to complete

Public liability insurance details and method statement for installation are available on
request.

Deptford Park Art Installation

Exhibition 9th – 13th June 2008
The Albany, Douglas Way, Deptford SE8 4AG

As part of ongoing improvements to Deptford Park, Lewisham Council wishes to commission a piece of public art to be installed in the park. A brief was issued in April 2008 asking for proposals from experienced, committed artists with an understanding of the local area. This exhibition presents the three short listed designs.

The chosen piece of art must:

• engage with the context, community, history and characteristics of the area
• enhance the new improvements and take on board future proposals for regeneration of the park, as laid out in the masterplan
• be attractive, sustainable and, as far as possible, vandal proof
• be of appropriate scale to provide a focal point and draw people into the park