Council defends decision not to reveal statue cost
PLYMOUTH city council has defended its reasons for not revealing the cost of a new waterfront statue at West Hoe by renowned sculptor Antony Gormley.
The council has been under pressure to say how much the artwork Look II cost, but argues the figure is covered by a confidentiality agreement with the artist.
Yesterday’s Western Morning News revealed that Plymouth MP Johnny Mercer is calling on the Information Commissioner to force Plymouth City Council to say what it paid for the 12ft cast iron figure.
The council has put a figure of £425,000 on the budget for the installation costs, including repairs to the West Hoe pier. But it is unclear whether that sum includes the amount paid for the statue, which weighs almost three tonnes.
The city council said in a statement on Wednesday: “We have written to Johnny Mercer MP to explain the context behind commissioning this work, which was part of our heritage and cultural activities to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the sailing of the Mayflower from Plymouth.
“We set aside £5 million in our capital programme to support a range of public realm, infrastructure and ‘historic houses’ investment as well as for a ‘world class monument/artwork’ to be commissioned to commemorate the Mayflower and to be a major visitor attraction for the city.
“At the time of this decision, the Council was led by a Conservative administration, and there was crossparty support. There has since been further investment by a Labour administration in the city’s heritage and cultural assets.
“Sir Antony Gormley OBE was commissioned to deliver ‘an internationally recognised work of art’ and the sculpture, named Look II was unveiled on 22 September. This has generated huge excitement in the city as well as globally – precisely what we hoped it would do.
“The contract for the acquisition of Look II between Antony Gormley and Plymouth City Council contains a confidentiality clause protecting its contents, including the agreed price, from disclosure by either party without mutual agreement.
“This is not unusual for contracts of this kind relating to the commissioning of high profile works of art, given that disclosure of the agreed cost could potentially impact the artist’s ability to freely negotiate with other potential clients.
“We have received a number of FOI requests and carried out a public interest test to review our decision to exempt information relating to the cost. Key elements of this test looked at the impact of disclosure of the information were: the likelihood, impact and costs of legal action against the Council for breach of the contract with Antony Gormley; the adverse reputational impact on the Council as a commissioner and exhibitor of public art; the fettering of the Council’s continuing ability to procure, commission and exhibit artworks.
“We believe the exemption should be maintained in respect of information covered by the contract with Antony Gormley.”
The council said the installation included repairs to the pier recommended after a survey in August 2018.
The statement said: “It made sense to carry out repairs at the same time as the installation of the sculpture, which included drilling and installation of piles to secure the sculpture. We also repointed the seaward edge of the pier and also repaired a void.”