Time to reflect on Mirror Man’s removal

Scotland is increasingly proving itself to be a nation of public art lovers.

From the imposing Kelpies at Falkirk to the flying grouse outside Perth, it is hard to imagine life without such structures.

What a shame then, that one of the best recent examples of public Scottish art has been removed after a little more than three years.

Sculptor Rob Mulholland’s ethereal piece Still has stood in the shallows of Loch Earn since 2014, having been commissioned by the owners of the nearby hotel.

The “Mirror Man”, as locals dubbed the figure, has become a familiar fixture and a tourist attraction in its own right.

It has had a rough time of it, blown over in high winds and buffeted by the loch’s choppy waters, but people have grown to love it, as evidenced by the outcry when it disappeared in 2015, initally presumed stolen but actually a victim of the ferocious weather.

The owners have every right to remove the statue if they feel it is time to give it a new setting but perhaps a public consultation or, at least, some warning, would not have gone amiss in this instance.

The artist has vowed to make a replacement but hopefully there is still time for a rethink.

The loch will seem a poorer place for Mirror Man’s absence.