fri 29/03/2024

Art Gallery: Fourth Plinth Commission | reviews, news & interviews

Art Gallery: Fourth Plinth Commission

Art Gallery: Fourth Plinth Commission

A playfully subversive mood dominates this strong shortlist

Katharina Fritsch's 'Hahn/ Cock': one of six contenders in a playful, enticing shortlist for the Fourth Plinth
A playful, subversive mood dominates the shortlist for Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth. Most of the six proposals, in what is a very strong shortlist, play on notions of British identity, probing themes of heroism, heritage and conquest. The models, which include a cock (the winged variety), a cake and a kid on a rocking horse, were unveiled yesterday by Mayor Boris Johnson. Two winners will be selected next spring, with the first appearing on the Plinth at the end of next year. The six are:

A playful, subversive mood dominates the shortlist for Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth. Most of the six proposals, in what is a very strong shortlist, play on notions of British identity, probing themes of heroism, heritage and conquest. The models, which include a cock (the winged variety), a cake and a kid on a rocking horse, were unveiled yesterday by Mayor Boris Johnson. Two winners will be selected next spring, with the first appearing on the Plinth at the end of next year. The six are:

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Comments

This looks so exciting.. Really like Marieles art, so outstanding!

to my mind the blue cock looks completely french - as a symbol. can't see the point of the boy on rocking horse, other than that there are some grown men on horses about the square. Was initially hostile to the battenberg, coz i'm fed up with art using recondite (or maybe not so recondite) historical symbolism. But like the variation in brick colour in the maquette. Feels quite London. Can see the point of 'sikander'. Prepared to be swayed by the organ and the mountains. It could all be a lot worse.

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