Only 2% of public statues in UK represent people of color

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
3 Jul 2022 13:14

Sexist discrimination was also noticed, as men account for 77.5% of all named public statuary, while women account for only 17%.

2% of public statues in the UK represent people of color.

The art education organization Art UK has made 13,500 public sculptures in the UK available online for the first time as part of a five-year effort involving over 500 photography and data volunteers.

The new database features photographs of works by prominent sculptors such as Antony Gormley, Henry Moore, and Barbara Hepworth, as well as pop singers such as the Bee Gees. Other works depict the paleontologist Mary Anning in Lyme Regis and Basil Watson's National Windrush Monument, which was just unveiled at London's Waterloo station.

2% representation of ethnic minorities

However, the study found that only 2% of public sculptures of identifiable individuals in the UK (about 2,600 works) are of people from ethnic minority groups. Importantly, men account for 77.5% of all named public statuary, while women account for only 17% (the remaining 5.5% are dedicated to both men and women). "The statistics are without a doubt disturbing," says Andrew Ellis, director of Art UK.

Betty Campbell (1934-2017), Wales' first Black head teacher, is commemorated with a public sculpture outside Cardiff Central railway station, which is a rare example of persons of color being honored in public sculptures and monuments. Another example is Kevin Atherton's bronze Platform Piece 1 (1985), which depicts a young black man waiting on the platform at Brixton train station.

The new database comes at an opportune time, offering critical information on contentious public artworks fueled by the government's "retain and explain" approach to heritage, which some critics argue is part of an "anti-woke" campaign.

Queen Victoria is the queen with the most public monuments and sculptures in her likeness, with over 175 pieces. Five Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948) statues can be found in London's Westminster and Camden, Greater Manchester, Cardiff, and Hull.

Meanwhile, True Love, a sculpture in Hull, honors two Inuit individuals, Memiadluk and Uckaluk, who arrived in the city in 1847 aboard the local whaling ship Truelove. The database also contains information about a bronze statue by Auguste Rodin, Eve (1882), which is located outside a Nando's restaurant in Harlow, Essex.

Preservation of sculptures

According to Art UK, the database will also help to safeguard and preserve outdoor sculptures. The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Arts Council England, the Henry Moore Foundation, and the Scottish government have all contributed to the project's funding (the project cost is undisclosed).

Art UK also reports that work on recording all sculptures from the last thousand years housed in UK public collections is nearly complete, with 36,000 examples currently online (these works will be recorded in a similar way to Art UK's paintings documentation project, covering institutions such as museums, universities, and civic buildings, according to Andrew Ellis). Subject to funding, Art UK's next image digitization project will be to capture outdoor murals across the UK.