Winter Lights
The Winter Lights programme began in 2006 with artist Ron Haselden’s Animal. The neon light commissioning project continued for three years seeing a total of 9 neon artworks lighting up the three Liverpool neighbourhoods represented by the Big Table; Kensington, Kirkdale and Garston.
For the first commission in 2006 Ron Haseldon invited pupils from schools in each of the Biennial Big Table neighbourhood areas to make a drawing on the subject of Animal on an A6 piece of paper. Three of these Animal drawings were transformed into large scale, freestanding line drawings in neon light to be installed in their respective neighbourhoods. The Kensington light was the exact replica of a Polar Bear drawn by a year one pupil, Maaz Binsaud, from Phoenix Primary School.
Commenting on why Community Seven was delighted to support this event, Tom McGuire Director of Community Seven said:
‘At Community Seven we believe that a big part of regeneration involves engaging with young people so what we especially liked about this project was the involvement of local school children. At the end of the day, a giant neon polar bear on our building in the run up to Christmas was an opportunity we could not turn down.’
Animal was supported by: Culture Company, Rotunda College, Metal, Garston Cultural Village, Community 7, PH Holt Charitable Trust, The Churches Conservation Trust, Friends of St Jame, CDS, Northwest RDA, LHT and Urban Splash.
In 2007 internationally renowned French artist Franck Scurti was commissioned to create a second series of amazing new Winter Lights for Kirkdale, Kensington and Garston. Franck Scurti was chosen because of his investigative approach within communities and his engaging and playful artworks that found a natural home within the neighbourhoods of Liverpool. He created a series of Liverpool Jackpots each with a different jackpot sequence for each neighbourhood: drawings relating to food, a body part and a phrase taken from British press selected in consultation with local residents. Kensington residents chose 'Power to the People'! The work responds to a recurring theme in Franck’s work relating city life to games of chance.
“I think there is a close relation between the behaviour code triggered by the experience of the urban ‘shock’ and the technique of the games of chance; between the disappearance of the craftsmanship and the industrialisation of leisure activities.”
The source of text and the commercial context of neon signage are joined with traditionally humorous props and loaded images with many translations and interpretations through seemingly random sequences. We are used to a constant bombardment of commercial messages so it is refreshing that these sequences inspire our bigger ideas, encourage positive change and embolden community spirit; the texts chosen by each neighbourhood reveal this desire.
Liverpool Jackpot was supported by: Liverpool Culture Company, Rotunda College, Metal, Garston Cultural Village, and Community 7.
The final neon installation in 2008 was Michael Pinsky’s Title Author Genre. Taking the form of three animated neon sculptures each constructed from specially designed signatures from each area the sculptures mixed existing graffiti tags with symbols specifically created by members of each community in response to each light’s location. Children from Kensington Field’s Community Centre came up with words and phrases that they felt specifically related to their neighbourhood. Can you see what common nickname for Kensington appears in the tag?
Artist Michael Pinsky believes graffiti helps define our neighbourhoods and for this artwork he has drawn inspiration from some of the graffiti tags that currently exist on streets and buildings in Liverpool. The process of transforming these marks into neon motifs and creating illuminated sculptures alters the way we think about them. Whilst some visitors only see abstract calligraphic shapes, others will recognise their origins or even have authored the tag.
“Tagging is one from the large gamut of methods people use to make their mark on their urban environment. As an artist who uses the city as a canvas to develop, produce and present ideas, the relationship between commissioned public art and the undercurrent of other urban interventions has always interested me. The process of transforming a number of these often-beautiful forms into neon motifs, to create illuminated sculptures, changes the perceived functions and implications of these designs, pushing the ambiguous relationship they have with their community.”
Michael Pinsky
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