The final in a series of three posts celebrating the wonderful sculptures among the autumn colours at Kew Gardens in London, England.
October in Kew Gardens 3
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Category Archives: SCULPTURE
October in Kew Gardens 2
More pictures from Kew Gardens with their beautiful autumn colours and exciting open-air sculpture and art exhibition this October.
October in Kew Gardens 1
I had a lovely day out at Kew Gardens in London this weekend. It was especially good because there was an exhibition of sculpture and art in the open air setting as well as indoor locations. I thought you might like to see some of the pictures I took showing the artwork among the wonderful autumn colours.
Worked Stone – Veltha by Emily Young
I am overwhelmed by the beauty of the Emily Young sculptures that are periodically exhibited in London locations for all to appreciate. Not only is the working of the stone exquisite but the selection of the stone for the work itself is amazing. As an amateur geologist I am fascinated by the range of colours, patterns, and textures naturally occurring in rocks, and to see them used to such great advantage is a privilege. I discovered an exhibition of Emily Young’s sculpted heads in the Southwood Garden attached to St James’ Church near Piccadilly on my last visit to London. They will be on display until January 2018. These pictures show aspects of a sculpted head called Veltha which is created in brecciated onyx, and it is displayed by courtesy of Bowman Sculpture.
Fish on the Pier
Naïve fish carvings in the wooden planks of a pier at Hull.
Gabions as Art & Architecture
At Whitstable Harbour gabions have been put to good use in the construction of a remarkable feature. Approaching the construction I could see an intriguing pale line across the darker pebbles, very reminiscent of the pale lines of empty oyster shells that I had just been seeing on the pebble beaches between the breakwaters. Closer inspection proved the pale line to be a symbolic tide line of man-made decorated ceramic pebbles. The feature is known as the Deck at Dead Man’s Corner and is supposed to resemble the bow of a ship, the wall a pebbly beach, and the vertical timber structures are made to the same specification as the groynes along the shore. The ‘tide line’ is a key feature of white ceramic pebbles set into the face of the wall. These were made by local people during a series of public workshops and classes held at the Community College Whitstable. The whole structure comprises seating and a stage built in 2011 for gatherings and events.
The Hive at Kew
“The Hive is a unique world class installation and experience created by artist Wolfgang Buttress, Simmonds Studio, Stage One and BDP. Pollination is important for our food security – one third of global crop yield is dependent, to some extent, on bees and other pollinators. In highlighting the importance of pollination in our food chain, The Hive poses one of the most pressing questions of our time – how can we protect our pollinators in order to feed our growing population? Illuminated by almost 1,000 LED lights, The Hive represents a vast honey bee hive. It’s linked to one of Kew’s hives and the lights flicker in time to vibrations caused when the bees communicate with one another. Wolfgang was inspired by work of Dr. Martin Benscik at Nottingham Trent University, who has developed technology to monitor the health of bee hives. His research is a prime example of how British science and creativity is helping solve global challenges.”
“What’s the buzz?
Experience four types of vibration caused by honey bees as they communicate inside a hive. Hear these bee “messages” through bone conduction where vibrations pass through bones in your head, instead of through your eardrums. The vibrations have been recorded using accelerometers by Dr. Martin Benscik, reader in physics in Nottingham Trent University.”
Accompanying the 17 metre high structure is a beautiful symphony of orchestral sounds performed in the key of C – the same key that bees buzz in. Together, the sound and light swell and diminish as the energy levels in Kew’s beehive surge.”
Quotes from on-site information noticeboards at The Hive in Kew Gardens
