"Art" is tricky business ! What one person sees as artistically beautiful, another may see as a piece of junk ! Art on public display always brings a very mixed reaction - and Sydney now has a problem that many other cities would envy.
Philanthropist Basil Sellers is proposing to donate a one million dollar sculpture by award winning artist Terrance Plowright - who designed the "Dancing Brolgas "fountain at Cockle Bay - to the city of Sydney. It is titled "Uniting a City "- and it is not exactly small. This sculpture stands over four story's heigh - and weighs 4.5 tonnes. It will take a massive crane to put it in place - once a site has been selected.
That's where things have gone awry. It seems that that the original offer was agreed by way of a handshake between Mr Sellers and then Arts Minister George Souris. At that time, the location was not fixed but it was assumed that it would be prominently displayed in a public area, such as the forecourt of the Museum of Contemporary Art, or the Royal Botanic Gardens.
George Souris is no longer Arts minister - and the state government is having second thoughts about accepting this gift. The sticking point seems to be - the location. The very different views of what constitutes art is making consensus difficult in government ranks and as work on this sculpture is rapidly nearing completion - a decision is urgently required.
Many will remember that old adage about "looking a gift horse in the mouth " and question the hesitation when it involves a very valuable item of great generosity. It is not every day that a philanthropist chooses to spend a million dollars to enhance the beauty of the "Harbour City "- and the work in question is the product of a renowned artist.
Art is supposed to be controversial. When the Eiffel Tower was erected in Paris as a "temporary "building to showcase the 1889 Exposition, the people of that city hated it and demanded that it be torn down. It quickly became the icon that sprang to mind whenever people thought of Paris, just as our harbour bridge depicts Sydney on the world stage - and now Paris would be unthinkable without it's silhouette dominating the city skyline.
"Uniting a City "may not attract the fame that either the harbour bridge nor the Opera House achieves in creating a mental image of Sydney, but it will certainly join a host of other icons that tourist visit and include in the photo menage they show to others when they return from their Australian holiday. The fact that some will applaud it - and other criticise - is the very nature of "art ", and it is strange how something revilled by some eventually finds favour and becomes some sort of "national treasure ".
True art lovers will be incensed that a bunch of politicians have the temerity to try and impose their individual opinions on judging whether a high value artistic gift deserves a place in our city. It is their job to be gracious - accept the gift - and let the people decide.
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