In connection with Turner Contemporary, Shawcross has been commissioned by local primary school children to make a new work for the Kent town. This will be the culmination of ‘Pioneering Places’, an ambitious multiyear project happening across East Kent to encourage local people to get involved with cultural organisations and shape the place where they live.
The series of works will be lightweight in design and will involve simple, visible mechanics that show gears and cogs and the power of the wind. Involving different colour combinations, the sculptures will be made out of materials such as galvanised steel, stainless steel and powder-coated or anodised aluminium.
Shawcross has completed a number of major public commissions across the world and, as well as being the youngest living member of the Royal Academy of Arts, was one of the first artists to be shown at Turner Contemporary when it opened in 2011. He comments: “I am really excited to be working with the young and brilliant minds of tomorrow to realise a new beacon of friendship and welcome to the Kent coast. The town of Ramsgate started as a port, and now we have a modern opportunity to continue this wonderful relationship to the sea and to arrival. Together we will create a new symbol for Ramsgate, learn some mechanics and the differing ways we used to communicate, and most importantly discover the huge power of cooperation and team work!”
