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Forward Statue

Heartland said:
Before local troglodytes decided to set fire to the Forward Statue in Centenary Square, it was a symbol of Birmingham's industrial achievements. Perhaps a new symbol needs to be made in more durable materials.

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Heartland I'm sorry to disagree , to be honest I have never seen such a nonsense in all my life and whats more the colour makes it even more of an eyesore . The original 3 man statue Boulton Watt and Murdoch said it all on the opposite side of the road . My thought if it ain't broke don't fix it.
 
I wasn't keen on the statue myself, anyway what was health and safety doing letting such a toxic fire hazard being placed in one of Birmingham's most public places. Surely it could have been treated with some sort of fire retardant first?

photo from Birmingham Live

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I was also not a fan of the Forward Statue om the basis of it did not capture the essence of Birmingham, its people and its industry. I appreciate that the Bolton and Watt stature is classical, but to me it just serves to glorify the wealthy and privileged.
 
Such opinions are useful and valid. It would seem that the statue was not liked at all, but I did raise the question of a new statue to reflect Birmingham Industry and the inspiration that"Forward" means. Personally I thought it was grotesque, but that is my opinion, as is clear from those comments already made.
 
I find the pic in post #8 most strange, there is a huge fire of the 'Forward' statue and yet there are people seated nearby appearing to be completely unconcerned ?? Eric
 
Heartland said:
Such opinions are useful and valid. It would seem that the statue was not liked at all, but I did raise the question of a new statue to reflect Birmingham Industry and the inspiration that"Forward" means. Personally I thought it was grotesque, but that is my opinion, as is clear from those comments already made.
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I can't see any reason why we don't use the original Birmingham coat of arms cast in metal , at one it used to be on the side of every corporation bus . It's the one with the hammer visible on top , hopefully that shouldn't upset anyone . As the recent problems Wolverhampton(God help us ) had with their coat of arms featuring chains.
 
I took this photo of the Forward statue in 2000. The red paint, presumably representing blood, is probably sending the message that the people of Birmingham shed blood while toiling to progress the advance of Birmingham as a manufacturing city. Like others have remarked, it does seem similar to Russian posters of the 1930s and 40s and therefore not typical of Birmingham. Dave.
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farmerdave said:
I took this photo of the Forward statue in 2000. The red paint, presumably representing blood, is probably sending the message that the people of Birmingham shed blood while toiling to progress the advance of Birmingham as a manufacturing city. Like others have remarked, it does seem similar to Russian posters of the 1930s and 40s and therefore not typical of Birmingham. Dave.
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Farmerdave I could never stand that , I thought what a total waste of money by BCC . Looks as though others agreed with me too although I would never have set light to it . The money paid for this would certainly have been a benefit to some other deserving case , I did'nt take a liking to that other eyesore Birmingham Family what a waste of money .
 
I always hated the stature and was quite glad when someone set fire to it.

It was a cheap badly made statue.

One of the things I hated was that the man's arm that was held aloft at the front was totally out of scale.

If he had put it by his side his hand would have almost reached the floor. Compare it with the length of the other arm which is against his chest.
 
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