Mixed reaction to Boscombe's new sculptures (From Bournemouth Echo)
When news happens text pix and video to 80360. Start your message with BE then leave a space.
Bournemouth RSS Feed Send your news, pictures & videos
Mixed reaction to Boscombe's new sculptures
9:30am Thursday 29th July 2010 in
THE first three pieces in a series of public sculptures have been installed in Boscombe – to mixed reviews.
They will form the area’s first arts trail and the designs were created by Dorset artist Andy Kirkby, who worked from ideas put forward by residents of Sea Road and Undercliff Road.
All seven sculptures, many of which will have a blue glow at night, are linked through colour, a gilded rope feature and materials including bronze, copper and cast iron.
The rope feature is intended to lead people towards the next piece of art along Sea Road and each has a marine theme.
Cllr Anne Filer, Bournemouth’s cabinet member for leisure, said: “This is an exciting project which has really engaged the local community.”
Like most pieces of art, the sculptures have met with a host of different reactions.
Resident Linda Sheppard said: “I love every one of the fun designs and I think they will inspire and entertain passers by.”
And Mark Cribb, who runs Urban Beach, said: “The arts trail is a fantastic way of linking the beautiful recent improvements on the seafront with the high street.”
San Remo Towers resident Jean Jackman said: “I wonder how long it’ll be before it’s vandalised?”
The £74,000 trail was funded by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment as part of the council’s cultural regeneration project for Boscombe and should be completed by September 30.
Comments(42)
McVICAR
says...
9:43am Thu 29 Jul 10
Mediclogan5
says...
10:19am Thu 29 Jul 10
Capt. Ahab (ret.)
says...
10:28am Thu 29 Jul 10
That not be a sculpture, that be one of Peapods discarded anchors.
Glashen
says...
10:41am Thu 29 Jul 10
-
If Boscombe hadn't used it for this public art somewhere would have benefited so lets enjoy it even if we don't immediately understand it.
-
Frankly awards like this from Quango's are going to be very thin on the ground from now on.
Morgan Leadbitter
says...
11:09am Thu 29 Jul 10
Glashen wrote:Good on you Glashen, well said. For many, any money (even if it does not cost the tax payer a bean) on this form of art will always be seen as a waste.
Wholly predictable responses so far, this money is not from the council tax payer but funded from the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment. - If Boscombe hadn't used it for this public art somewhere would have benefited so lets enjoy it even if we don't immediately understand it. - Frankly awards like this from Quango's are going to be very thin on the ground from now on.
Boscombe has good elements and not so good, including people. The only real failure will be when we stop trying to improve it.
Boscombebiz
says...
11:26am Thu 29 Jul 10
McVICAR
says...
11:34am Thu 29 Jul 10
Glashen wrote:Just because its not from council tax payers money does not mean its money well spent.
Wholly predictable responses so far, this money is not from the council tax payer but funded from the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment.
-
If Boscombe hadn't used it for this public art somewhere would have benefited so lets enjoy it even if we don't immediately understand it.
-
Frankly awards like this from Quango's are going to be very thin on the ground from now on.
£74,000 for this is really gonna put Boscombe on the map, I can see all the tourists rushing to get a look at these heaps of scrap metal.
I suppose they could be used as hangers for all the surfers to leave their wetsuits when they leave Boscombe laughing.
apritchard
says...
11:48am Thu 29 Jul 10
And just where do you think that the money that the CABE gives away (for such rubbish) comes from?
Here is a multiple choice question:
(a) it grows on trees
(b) an alchemist made gold for CABE
(c) from the UK tax payers
All quangos are funded by the UK taxpayer (or from the EU, which effectively means the same thing), so we are still paying for this 'sculpture'.
Gastines
says...
12:01pm Thu 29 Jul 10
Glashen
says...
12:15pm Thu 29 Jul 10
apritchard wrote:I never said it wasn't public money only that if it hadn't been spent in Boscombe it would have gone somewhere else. All those who want a end to this sort of funding are getting their wish, but maybe a little public art isn't such a bad thing in these materialistic times.
"Good on you Glashen, well said. For many, any money (even if it does not cost the tax payer a bean) on this form of art will always be seen as a waste"
And just where do you think that the money that the CABE gives away (for such rubbish) comes from?
Here is a multiple choice question:
(a) it grows on trees
(b) an alchemist made gold for CABE
(c) from the UK tax payers
All quangos are funded by the UK taxpayer (or from the EU, which effectively means the same thing), so we are still paying for this 'sculpture'.
MICHAELJCARPENTER2003@YAHOO.CO.UK
says...
12:38pm Thu 29 Jul 10
ALSO WHEN WILL THE POLICE STOP THE CYCLIST'S IN THE PRECINT, AS ON MARKET DAYS YOU STILL GET IDIOTS RIDING THEIR BIKES AT SPEED WHILST TRY TO WEAVE INBETWEEN SHOPPERS.
TinyLegacy
says...
12:44pm Thu 29 Jul 10
MICHAELJCARPENTER200Because its more fun. Walk in a zig-zag motion when a cyclist comes riding toward you to add spice. Oh, and well done on the art and stuff.
3@YAHOO.CO.UK wrote:
WHEN WILL THEY SPEND MONEY ON BOSCOMBE PRECINT INSTEAD OF THE SEA ROAD AREA? ALSO WHEN WILL THE POLICE STOP THE CYCLIST'S IN THE PRECINT, AS ON MARKET DAYS YOU STILL GET IDIOTS RIDING THEIR BIKES AT SPEED WHILST TRY TO WEAVE INBETWEEN SHOPPERS.
roysses
says...
1:04pm Thu 29 Jul 10
If you all do the same, he will get the message more quickly. Contact him at larry.austin@bournem
outh.gov.uk
BmthNewshound
says...
1:10pm Thu 29 Jul 10
.
Lets hope that these do not become a magnet for vandals
Huey
says...
2:12pm Thu 29 Jul 10
Boscombebiz wrote:Well said
I live at the bottom of Sea Road and think these sculptures are amazing! I was very sceptical until I saw them and think they blend in so well with what is happening in Boscombe. As for the remarks above, get a life. Boscombe is thriving and the town centre is booming right now.
Morgan Leadbitter
says...
2:20pm Thu 29 Jul 10
apritchard wrote:Fundamentally I suppose it comes down to if you think tax payers money (in whatever diluted form it may be) should be spent on public art. Many think it should and many think not. If you absolutely loved what you saw, would it worth 74k? Or is it a case of point blank, we just should not do it?
"Good on you Glashen, well said. For many, any money (even if it does not cost the tax payer a bean) on this form of art will always be seen as a waste" And just where do you think that the money that the CABE gives away (for such rubbish) comes from? Here is a multiple choice question: (a) it grows on trees (b) an alchemist made gold for CABE (c) from the UK tax payers All quangos are funded by the UK taxpayer (or from the EU, which effectively means the same thing), so we are still paying for this 'sculpture'.
Markcribb
says...
2:23pm Thu 29 Jul 10
Bit by bit, little by little, it keeps improving and this arts trail is just one more stage in the plethora of positive things that are really reinvigorating the town and bringing it back to its former glory.
It won't be finished overnight, but there is much happening week in week out in both the private and public sector.
Stand proud Boscombe residents, enjoy your new found civic pride and now even soak up a bit of art on route from your Victorian high street to your stunning beach. I for one love working and living here and being part of the local community.
All the best.
Mark.
WOC
says...
2:46pm Thu 29 Jul 10
boracay
says...
2:55pm Thu 29 Jul 10
g addict's/Alcaholic's jungle even if the Bournemouth Council or any-other **** Art's College or Jump't up do gooder Association make 18 Carat Gold Statu of the Man who invented the Surf Reaf at Boscombe Beach, with Diamond encrusted eye's and buttons on it.
Boscombebiz
says...
3:00pm Thu 29 Jul 10
boracay wrote:Stunning use of the English Language and spelling.
Boscombe will alway's be a Scumbag/Dosser's/Dru
g addict's/Alcaholic's jungle even if the Bournemouth Council or any-other **** Art's College or Jump't up do gooder Association make 18 Carat Gold Statu of the Man who invented the Surf Reaf at Boscombe Beach, with Diamond encrusted eye's and buttons on it.
Well said Mark Cribb though, someone who puts his money where his mouth is and makes a difference in Boscombe. We are all proud of what you have achieved here.
4444kate
says...
3:30pm Thu 29 Jul 10
Huey wrote:I agree well said! Boscombe is really quite a nice place to go out in the evenings now. So Many nice bars on the seafront and walking towards the sea front.
Boscombebiz wrote: I live at the bottom of Sea Road and think these sculptures are amazing! I was very sceptical until I saw them and think they blend in so well with what is happening in Boscombe. As for the remarks above, get a life. Boscombe is thriving and the town centre is booming right now.Well said
People always talk about making the area nicer and now the council are everyone still complains....
A few years ago i would never have lived in Boscombe but it has improved so much. I live there now and its my favourite place I've ever lived. I hope they carry on developing the area and encourage people to buy property and build less studio flats, which often get filled by people up to no good...
caz-caz
says...
4:18pm Thu 29 Jul 10
Boscombebiz wrote:mark cribb has a reason to promote boscombe ,he has a business there and fair play he had the foresight to see the development ahead and backed it with cash ,for him successfully. however its all a bit of a pigs ear and the improvements have actually been for the purpose of drawing further investment into the area. well with a failed surf reef,a lot of unsold prestige beach pods and a none too special block of flats it really isnt going to happen .there was a time when councillors were falling over themselves to be assossciated with it - but theyve gone a bit quiet now . as for improvements north of owls road ,I work there too and i am not seeing it ,in fact i would say the drugs situation is totally out of control .ordinary people are seeing it ,and trully seeing it but it is not being clamped down on by the police .can that area of boscombe really be improved ? i have my doubts and its this strange mix of haves and havenots that make me think its a novelty now but will end in tears especially with government funding cutbacks - sculptures ! its all a matter of taste ,though make no mistake that we as taxpayers are funding it this money wasnt gifted and in these times it could be put to better use
boracay wrote: Boscombe will alway's be a Scumbag/Dosser's/Dru g addict's/Alcaholic's jungle even if the Bournemouth Council or any-other **** Art's College or Jump't up do gooder Association make 18 Carat Gold Statu of the Man who invented the Surf Reaf at Boscombe Beach, with Diamond encrusted eye's and buttons on it.Stunning use of the English Language and spelling. Well said Mark Cribb though, someone who puts his money where his mouth is and makes a difference in Boscombe. We are all proud of what you have achieved here.
denisd
says...
4:37pm Thu 29 Jul 10
PierOne
says...
4:58pm Thu 29 Jul 10
Not knocking the idea but the application of the actual 'art' leaves a lot to be desired...
Gary Sherborne
says...
6:48pm Thu 29 Jul 10
fedupwithjobsworths
says...
7:19pm Thu 29 Jul 10
Morgan Leadbitter wrote:Problem is Morgan Leadbitter - the "Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment" is funded by the taxpayer, so it's £74K of our taxes which could have been better spent on the needy.
Glashen wrote: Wholly predictable responses so far, this money is not from the council tax payer but funded from the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment. - If Boscombe hadn't used it for this public art somewhere would have benefited so lets enjoy it even if we don't immediately understand it. - Frankly awards like this from Quango's are going to be very thin on the ground from now on.Good on you Glashen, well said. For many, any money (even if it does not cost the tax payer a bean) on this form of art will always be seen as a waste. Boscombe has good elements and not so good, including people. The only real failure will be when we stop trying to improve it.
MikeFrench
says...
7:37pm Thu 29 Jul 10
Boscombe has already got enough beauty in the buildings around, but not at eye level.
Lokk above the tatty shop fronts and you will find some amazing architecture and historical landmarks that get sadly neglected and missed by those who do not see that it is there.
Mind you, do not look up while walking or you will be bound to tread in the dog 'mess', vomit, takeaway remnants or trip over one of the many loose slabs/tiles !!!!
zagzig
says...
9:04pm Thu 29 Jul 10
Rally
says...
10:20pm Thu 29 Jul 10
Glashen wrote:CABE (Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment) received its funding for last year from two main government departments. £4,690,000 from DCMS (Department for Culture, Media and Sport) and £6,940,000 from CLG (Communities and Local Government).
Wholly predictable responses so far, this money is not from the council tax payer but funded from the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment. - If Boscombe hadn't used it for this public art somewhere would have benefited so lets enjoy it even if we don't immediately understand it. - Frankly awards like this from Quango's are going to be very thin on the ground from now on.
Now, where did this £11.63 million come from?
The Council Tax?
Goodness me, no.
It was paid by us Tax Payers.
Oh, well, that's alright, then...
I reckon that spending £74K on what looks like the result of a lightning strike on a scap metal yard borders on the criminal.
NO, wait, I'm being unfair. Some obscure 'artist' made a few bob for himself and at least half-a-dozen people in Boscombe have had their lives enhanced by seeing these metallic what-ever-they-are-s
upposed to-be-or-represent objects, so the money isn't entirely wasted, is it...
butsybunny
says...
10:29pm Thu 29 Jul 10
The Witch
says...
10:54pm Thu 29 Jul 10
s-pb2
says...
11:37pm Thu 29 Jul 10
.
The more i hear Mark Cribb, the more he sounds like a Conservative Councillor to be. Sadly the vast majority of locals to his places just cant afford to eat there.
Bob49
says...
12:14am Fri 30 Jul 10
.
In some far of la la land maybe, but in the real world not. More shops have closed since the reef was declared 'finished'. Go into the Sovereign Centre and count the empty shop units.
.
The street sweepers are now are as rare as buyers for the surfpods and Moneycombe flats. The place becomes tattier by the minute.
.
There are too many who have been making a hefty whack out of renting squalid bedsits at extortionate rates to benefit claimants for too long. Who are the real benefit scroungers there is a moot point.
.
Boscombe is in the state it is because for far too long too much has been taken out and too little put back in. Travel a few hundred yards to where I live in Southbourne and you will often see two mini streetsweepers in the same road,night after night and you will not see a weed anywhere on the roadside.
.
Visit my mate in Boscombe, south of the High Street and it is like a third world shanty town.
.
Boscombe needs people who want to make something of it, not those who want to make something out of it.
.
Get rid of the leeches and the body might begin to function again.
retired lady
says...
8:11am Fri 30 Jul 10
Norman Mead
says...
9:17am Fri 30 Jul 10
Benniestewart
says...
10:27am Fri 30 Jul 10
is well intentioned whether or not you
like the sculptures a matter of taste
and opinion
Enough money time energy has been spent on the Boscombe Beach project
To capitalise now on all those resources the Town Council must now concentrate and be as equally committed to preventing any more Drop in Centres, Rehab Units and
swell of low cost housing being built in Boscombe the saturation of these
developments will never allow Boscombe to take its place as it once did as one of the best seaside
resorts in the U.K
The beautiful Gardens leading down to the beach fabulous childrens golf course sports facilities coffee shop
all accredited to the work of the local community
Time is running out for Boscombe
this Town Council must act and must
try and stop the obvious there is absolutely nothing wrong with Boscombe what is wrong has been
the inability of the Council to stop
the concentration of Dropins and Rehabs which have acted as a magnet for the amount of individuals
that so many people are concerned about
Money should not have been spent on the Arts Trail The Boscombe Spa Project will have a short shelf life
Huge sums of money spent will be wasted if the Council does not have the heart or the courage to deal with the social problems in Boscombe caused simply by the density of
Rehabs,Halfway Houses and Drop-ins
Gary Sherborne
says...
11:23am Fri 30 Jul 10
Taffytim
says...
1:56pm Fri 30 Jul 10
My hat is off to the hard work that has been invested into getting these pieces installed. Well done.
Rally
says...
1:56pm Fri 30 Jul 10
Norman Mead wrote:I've no objection to CABE spending tax payers' money on projects in Boscombe. What I object to is what it spent it on (yet another 'Emporer's New Clothes'/'Mickey Mouse' project).
Seeing as we've all (well, we working types anyhow) paid the tax money that goes to fund CABE, we may as well get a bit of it back for the local area while we can. Or would you rather it all be spent in other places?
£74K towards the cost of, say, a family-orientated venue on Boscombe Pier would have been more welcome.
BournemouthMum
says...
2:38pm Mon 2 Aug 10
Huey wrote:I agree, well said:)
Boscombebiz wrote:Well said
I live at the bottom of Sea Road and think these sculptures are amazing! I was very sceptical until I saw them and think they blend in so well with what is happening in Boscombe. As for the remarks above, get a life. Boscombe is thriving and the town centre is booming right now.
MikeFrench
says...
9:50am Tue 10 Aug 10
So the 74k may have come from a grant, but yet again (as I always ask) who pays for the maintainance/cleanin
g ?
CABE or the local taxpayer ?
More Bournemouth stories
- Teenagers cycling to Italy in minibus bid
- Taxi cameras: Bournemouth cabs could have CCTV installed
- Crackdown on Sovereign Centre shoplifters
- Bournemouth singer invited to perform for family of otters
- New 62-apartment scheme could be approved at Leyton Mount car park site
- Puppet Festival and workshop proves a hit at Lighthouse
- Bournemouth council considering buying more homes in Boscombe
- Ballroom returns to Bournemouth Pavilion
- Winton Zumba teacher overcomes dyslexia to publish book
- Council head urges Boscombe regeneration meeting attendance
TALL ORDER: Urban Beach waitress Holly Brierley looks up at the sculpture outside the hotel in Argyll Road
PUZZLED: San Remo Towers resident Jean Jackman scratches her head as she looks at this sculpture on the corner of Sea Road and Owls Road
ARTS TRAIL: The sculpture opposite in Sea Road
Most popular
Local Information
Enter your postcode, town or place name
Nickolai says...
9:35am Thu 29 Jul 10
Yes, travel from the delights of the beach to thescum-infested cackhole that is Boscum High street - marvellous.