At a time when public art and monuments are as politically charged as ever, the test of a great public work of art is surely in the community’s response. As the locals passed the sculpture, they reacted warmly, looking at the two figures, touching them, some asking “What does this represent? Is this for me? ” Although Price’s sculpture and Basil Watson’s official national monument in Waterloo were unveiled today to salute the generation that came from the Caribbean to the UK between 1948 and 1970, those affected by the Windrush scandal are still fighting for compensation. “It took so long to get here”… Thomas J Price. Photo: Hackney.org.uk Until recently, Price, a 41-year-old artist from London, was more successful in the US than in the UK for the often larger life sculptures of every black man and woman. They are not sculptures of specific individuals, but have been created through compositions of many persons and forms. Their power lies in their regularity – they can look into space or study a smartphone – and as works of art they are meant to raise questions about who we give public space to and why. For this supply, Price used images of 30 residents of Hackney, a municipality with one of the largest black communities in the country. After an open call to the Windrush generation and their descendants, everyone who showed up was digitally arrested and interviewed. While the work consists of two figures – a young man and an old woman – they represent an entire generation, not only in terms of their timeliness, but also with their attitude, their characteristics, their clothes and every element of their physical appearance. . It was impossible not to get excited watching those who participated in the creation of Warm Shores see the project for the first time. There were a few tears, but the atmosphere was happy, with a touch of happy disbelief. Even Price seemed outdated. “It took so long to get here,” he said. “It’s unbelievable, in terms of what I wanted to do and achieve my internship. “Having a board committee feels surreal and gives me hope that people are starting to come into discussions about being aware of how we see each other and who is being given space to just exist as human beings.” In the argument for the demolition of the statues of oppressors in the aftermath of the assassination of George Floyd, some said they wanted to feel represented by the monuments around them. Warm Shores, which corresponds to a similar work by Veronica Ryan, who was nominated for the Turner Prize when it was unveiled last year, is an example of how to install public art in 2022. It is possible to commission politically relevant contemporary art and to represent the community in which it is located? Warm Shores proves it is.
