Written by Mirella Bandini, ArtCan artist
Photos by Mirella Bandini and Kate Enters, ArtCan artists
On the 24th June a group of ArtCan artists got together for their summer party – a walk along The Line – London’s first contemporary art walk, consisting of more than 10 public sculptures. It winds its way along the River Thames, even crossing the Greenwich Meridian at a point (with a pertinently placed artwork titled ‘Here’ by Thomson and Craighead to mark the spot).
In England, the weather is of the utmost importance, especially when you’re spending the day outdoors, so let’s begin there… It was pleasantly warm, but not sweltering; the clouds slightly ominous and brooding, with the sun peaking through every now and then, making it a perfect day for a long walk. The sky also provided a beautiful backdrop for all the photo taking that was bound to happen.
After a slightly disoriented start, we finally located our ‘yellow brick road’ and said photo taking began. It was still early in the day so energy levels were high and there was much interaction with both the sculptures (we had lots of fun with Thomas J Price’s ‘Network’) and the surroundings as we wandered along. It was a rare opportunity to experience London with like-minded artists and have discussions about art, life, landscape, and everything in-between – truly inspirational, educational and just good fun and laughter.
There were of course some wonderful pieces of sculpture too, my favourites being the evocative and somewhat sensual ‘Liberty Grip’ by Gary Hume, and the playful but with a deeper twist, ‘DNA DL90’ by Abigail Fallis, which was particularly striking against the temperamental sky. Also on show were the intriguing ‘A slice of life’ by Richard Wilson which we could only view half of as the tide was in, and Damien Hirst’s ‘Sensation’ which was very Damien Hirst. Alex Chinneck’s ‘A bullet from a shooting star’ sadly sits behind a fence which, in my opinion, distracted from its scale and intent somewhat.
Another highlight was the Emirates Air Line cable car ride over the Thames. It kept us on the edge of our seats with its stunning views over London’s Docklands district (some were on the edge of their seats for different reasons – can you say ‘fear of heights’!). Colourful cranes, high rise buildings and of course, Antony Gormley’s ‘Quantum Cloud’ sculpture floating in the river made for some beautiful views while swinging through the air.
We ended a very enjoyable — if not slightly warm — walk in a cool pub, the Cutty Sark, on the river bank for a well-deserved drink, a bit of late lunch and more stimulating conversation. All in all, it was a brilliant day! Definitely not your average ‘summer party’ but all the better for it – fresh air, exercise, great art and good people – what more could you ask for!
