Life-sized Antony Gormley sculpture in Margate gets the go-ahead

A life-sized Antony Gormley sculpture on the chalk bed in front of Turner Contemporary has been given planning permission by Thanet council.

The sculpture will be installed at Fulsam Rock, a stone’s throw from Turner Contemporary, on the old concrete jetty.

The sculpture

The sculpture, ANOTHER TIME, is a series of one hundred sculptures and is identical to the 100 sculptures of ANOTHER PLACE (2007) which is permanently installed on Crosby Beach, Merseyside. The body forms are taken from 17 distinct body casting sessions that were carried out in 1995.

Each of the  individual pieces has been cast five or six times and shows the manner of its making – traces of cling film, mould joint lines, the sections of the plaster positive and the ingates for the molten metal are all clearly visible on the rusting surface.

The Margate sculpture will be the first time these particular casts have been exhibited.

Gallery and sea

The site chosen at Margate is in full view of the main windows of the Turner Contemporary gallery and is intended to make a connection between gallery and sea, time and tide, art and nature. It is purposefully connected to existing rocks that are covered at high tide.  It is also visible from the Harbour Arm, Rendezvous and the beach.

The sculpture, made of cast iron and weighing 650kgs, and the rocks will be visible or disappear according to the tide, this will catalyse the desire to look out and see.

The Sunley Gallery and first-floor balcony of the gallery will become spaces from which visitors can view and experience Another Time.

A second Kent sculpture by Gormley

A second sculpture, this time of a pair of figures  placed on the shoreline, is planned for Folkestone.

In the design document a statement from Turner Contemporary says: “Antony Gormley has successfully realised a number of these projects at other sensitive, protected shoreline and tidal locations around the UK.

“Turner Contemporary is committed to working with all local, national and international authorities to ensure this exciting project is realised properly, with due care and diligence and with maximum positive impact for Margate and Kent as a whole.

Coming soon! A life-size Antony Gormley sculpture visible from the gallery windows… https://t.co/sIsxPaVnrs#margate pic.twitter.com/Hiq3mp64ax

— Turner Contemporary (@TCMargate) July 25, 2017

“Another Time (Margate and Folkestone) will bring sculpture of national significance by Antony Gormley, one of Britain’s foremost contemporary artists, to two coastal towns in Kent, celebrating and capitalising on the specifics of our locality: at the edge of land and sea.

“ It aims to increase cultural tourism within Kent linked to the Cultural Destinations initiative: a 3 year partnership between ACE and Visit England, which enables arts and culture organisations working in partnership with tourism agencies to increase their reach and resilience. Turner Contemporary is the lead organisation for Kent.”

Both sets of figures are planned to be in place from this month to November 2017.

It will be the first time these particular casts from Gormley’s series have been exhibited and it will be Gormley’s first outdoor installation in Kent since Waste Man (Margate, 2006).

Rob Kenyon, Director of Community Services at TDC, said; “We are delighted to have approved this Antony Gormley sculpture. He is one of Britain’s finest contemporary artists and we are excited that the people of Thanet can enjoy his work.

“The planned installation celebrates our unique location – at the edge of both land and sea. It will be visible or disappear according to the tide, increasing the sense of mystery and charm. The human scale and magical setting will make this installation a deeply moving work.

“Thanet’s creative and tourist industry is already booming and this will be yet another reason for people to visit our fantastic coastline and the first class Turner Contemporary.”

The installation of the sculpture will take place over the next 3 weeks.

Sarah Martin, Head of Exhibitions at Turner Contemporary said;“We are thrilled to feature Antony Gormley’s sculpture as part of our summer season at Turner Contemporary. Stepping beyond the walls of the gallery and siting artworks in outdoor  spaces is both hugely exciting and logistically complex.

“After months of work behind the scenes, it’s brilliant to see the installation work begin. A celebration of our extraordinary views of the North Sea – it will undoubtedly capture imaginations.”