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Birmingham Statue Campaign

I was very pleased when they returned and like the new look, I was at College (it was the College of Commerce in those days) when they were first erected, I remember standing on the desks to see them being lowered into position and I did write to the Mail about taking them out of storage. I am glad they did, we've lost so much over the years. I wonder what THEY think of the new library!!!!!!!!
 
Incidentally, thanks for the original picture berniew, I bet that's me walking down Broad Street in the sticky out skirt!!!
 
DavidGrain said:
This might be a controversial idea but what about remaking the Forward statue in some material that won't burn. I know that I described it as Stalinist Art when it first appeared but I grew to like it.

King Kong no thank you. I thought it was an insult to Sir Herbert Manzoni when it was put in Manzoni Gardens.
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The sad thing about the Forward statue is that flame inhibitor could have been added to the resin but was not used to save money.
 
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ellbrown said:
This piece at Dollman Street reminds me of the burnt Forward sculpture

A Tragedy in the North
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A very interesting sculpture. ell's comentary says that it depicts a mining disaster in the north of France. I would be interested to know more about why it is in Birmingham.
 
Sooner than have something of vague relevance or something that relates to someone that lots of people have forgotten (if they ever heard of them at all) why not a scale model of the centre of the city from the time of incorporation or just from a century before they put it out.
 
hi jenny
What happened to the lady statue on the colum which was in the old bull ring in 1949
she was standing on a column and aroud the base or half way don the column there is a lady posing and playing an harp instrument
and just a little bit of space i either its a man and a child or its another lady with another child sitting there
i would imagineing and proposed listening to the lady playing the harp
it would have been yards from the ramp and in directly in line with the old wool worths obvisionly it was removed when they built the new concourse
first time around when they built the bull ring first time around
i have a huge picture of the old bull ring painted by robert r calvert date 1949 which clearly shows you this person on the column
best wishes jenny ; Astonian; Alan;;;
 
Something based on the working people of the Bull Ring would be nice,I just hope its not another foreign president,that was nowt to do with Brum.
 
Something featuring a man, a woman and children. That's one of the many reasons why I like the Hall of Memory statues, they included a woman DOING something important, I.e not just decorative. Viv.
 
Hi Astonian: Sorry I don't recall this statue although I have a copy of Robert Calvert's famous print online. Perhaps someone else might
know about the statue.
 
hi jeny ann
many thanks for your reply the one i have in my house is taken from the 1949 i also have an early edition of the bullring which is a small one i accuired from a charity shop in bromscrove some yearsback i payed 25 pounds for it ;
I will check against that one to see if that one as well got the statue on ; asits a ig picture on my wall i can see the lady statued quite clearly
so i will se if there is any diference thats by calver as well ; okay ;
and i would like to say a big thank you for all the hard work you and the team do for us all
best wishes Astonian;; Alan;;
 
Stephen0002002 said:
I was just thinking it would be good to have a statue of a woman for a change Viv. What famous women have we had ?
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Well Stephen we could go for either the anti-slavery writer Mary Anne Schimmelpenninck (née Galton, 1778 - 1856) or Constance Naden (1858 - 1899) philosopher, scientist and poet. Think I'd vote for Schimmelpenninck, although the sculptor might have problems fitting her full name on the plinth! Viv.
 
What about the first lady reporter Marie Bethel Beauclerc, without her we would have known little of the teachings of George Dawson.
 
Im sorry I dont know any of these women - thats down to my lack of knowledge.
I think our lady subject should ignite the imagination and/or be well known generally. What you think ? ..

I will accept a ticking off ... if you feel I'm wrong :)
 
hi elbrown ;
Have you an enlarged picture of this statue be cause what calvert as got on his picture dated 1949
is a white round concrete pillar and had it had a couple of othere features around the rearside of the pillar
with a lady or girl postioined with a harp instrument and another one along side that appears to be a person with a child
to me the one you are showing in black or i surpose its in coulour bronzed or it loks like s different person to what you are saying
and the monument is surrounded on a brick bulding with cast iron railing around it
the wife is out today so i will go into the loft and try and cross check if its the same figure which is smaller but the coulours are better ;
also on the picture surrounding it there are four gas matle lamps placed around the four corners of the figure
and its the bull rin oing down the steep hill with allthe hawkers shouting and calling out come on love try these it when they was beckoning the public
to try there fruits before they buy and also we had the trolly buses running up and down through the bull ring along side the tram lines
and in the view he painted was the number nine 29 A bus goin up through baldwins lane pheasy estate via king standing it says
picture relates to 1949 ; best wishes Astonian;;
 
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