Next on the Fourth Plinth … tin-can treasure and giant dollop of cream
A RECREATION in tin cans of a monument destroyed by IS will be the next work of art to sit on top of the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square.
Iraqi-American artist Michael Rakowitz built a model of the Lamassu — a winged bull that stood at the gates of the ancient cit y of Nineveh from 700 BC — after it was destroyed when fanatics stormed the Mosul Museum in Iraq.
He used empty Iraqi date syrup cans to build it to represent one of the country’s formerly flourishing industries destroyed by war.
His work, called The Invisible Enemy Should Not Exist, will be unveiled next year after the plinth’s current occupant, a seven-metre-high thumb made by David Shrigley, is taken down in March.
The judging panel also chose from the shortlist of five the work that will follow Rakowitz’s piece.
Heather Phillipson’s sculpture THE END is a giant whirl of cream topped with a cherry, a fly and a drone that will film Trafalgar Square from its vantage point on the plinth. It will be installed in 2020.
Phillipson, a published poet based in Hackney, said she wanted her work to take into account the square’s physical shape but also its role in the nation’s politics as the destination of public protests.
She said: “Topped with a giant, unstable load of replica whipped cream, a cherry, a fly and a functioning drone, the plinth becomes a monument to hubris and impending collapse.”
The sculptures will be the 12th and 13th works to appear on the plinth since the project began in 1998.
Justine Simons, Deputy Mayor for Culture and Creative Industries, said: “Over 9,000 people have had their say on what was an incredible shortlist, and it’s clear that these two hugely contrasting artworks stand out for their visual impact as well as their unique ability to make the viewer stop and think.
“The Fourth Plinth is the world’s most loved and talked-about public art platform — it is pioneering, inventive and surprising, and above all, shows that London is open to creativity and ideas from around the world.”