Public Art Research Archive, Sheffield Hallam University
PUBLIC ART IN SHEFFIELD

Paul Mason
stone carving, 1991
Tudor Square
stone


Location:
On the wall surrounding the grass 'arena' in the middle of the Square. (A-Z p5 4F)

Description:
The supporting wall changes height in relation to the site. At the end nearest the Crucible a low wall is created below the grass, at the other end a wall is formed from the level of the paving down to the grass. Marks are incised on this walls. Signs for the two hemispheres, the North Star and the Southern Cross, are found at the centre panels at each end and indicate the top and bottom of the oval. In addition marks referring to land, sea and sky, and to intimately scaled nature, are interspersed with different alphabet marks

Commission:
Sheffield City Council, funded by J. G. Graves Charitable Trust.

Comment:
The artist says that the work is about communication. The marks of communication are multicultural, but they do not need to be actually read or understood. As the artist wrote in 1991, "Tudor Square celebrates the simple art of drawing, and the power to construct and convey meaning from that individual act." In contrast, the placing of the marks and the construction of the wall itself represent very complex processes. Tudor Square's quiet sophistication makes an interesting comparison with Birmingham's Centenary Square opened in the same year.



More images of this piece

Main Tudor Square page


thumbnails sheffield city centre work in sheffield thumbnails outer sheffield
documents other locationslinks links
search homepage

This page maintained by Dave Ball
Slide Collection, Learning and IT Services
Last updated September 5, 2006