Project Background
A New Path is a project developed in partnership by Sorcha Dallas Projects and Jenny Crowe Commissions.
Glasgow has an interesting and varied history of commissioning public artworks. A New Path aims to explore and reinvigorate the commissioning of permanent and temporary artworks within the city.
The project will revisit existing public artworks, as well as commissioning new permanent and temporary works by artists on a local, national and international level.
The Research Phase, 2010
A number of significant public artworks, commissioned by a range of organisations, exist within Glasgow city centre. For the research phase of this project we have selected 6 artworks which we feel are significant for a variety of reasons: the context, commissioning history, or how the resulting artwork fits within the artist's wider practice. We have researched the artworks and issues around them, and commissioned texts by local and international writers with the aim of reappraising these pieces and allowing their significance to reach a wider audience.
The Selected Artworks and Writers
- Ian Hamilton Finlay: Bridge Piers, 1990, Broomielaw, Glasgow (text by Graham Fagen)
- Niki de Saint Phalle: Tympanum, 1996, GoMA, Royal Exchange Square, Glasgow (text by Ben Harman)
- Douglas Gordon: Empire, 1998, Tontine Lane (moved from Brunswick Lane) (text by Caoimhin MacGiolla Leith)
- Graham Fagen: Where the Heart Is, 1999-01, Royston Road Parks (text by David Harding)
- Christine Borland: To Be Set and Sown in the Garden, 2002, Glasgow University (text by Dominic Paterson)
- Toby Paterson: Poised Array, 2007, BBC Scotland Headquarters (text by Sam Gathercole)
The Route
We have created a Route for the viewer to negotiate at their own pace: by foot, bus or virtually through navigating this site. There are walking tours and events planned over the forthcoming year – please check our Events section for further information.
The Commissioning Phase, from 2011
When the Research Phase has been completed, we will aim to commission temporary and permanent artworks within Glasgow city centre, showcasing the best local, national and international artists. We will extend the route established during the Research Phase to include the new commissions.
Together the new and existing works will create A New Path through the city centre. The legacy of the project will be to create a blueprint for future commissioning within the city.
Acknowledgements
A New Path would like to thank:
A New Path Intern Nicola Celia Wright for her invaluable assistance on this project, Toby Paterson, Graham Fagen, Christine Borland, Ben Harman, Euan McArthur, David Harding, Sam Gathercole, Dominic Paterson, Caoimhin Mac Giolla Leith, Andrew Lee, Lucy Byatt, Ross Hunter, Katrina Brown and Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art, Liz Davidson at Merchant City Initiative and Leonie Bell, Anne Petrie, Karen Ward Boyd and Clare Simpson at The Scottish Arts Council.