Sculpture Promenade returns to Fitzwilliam Museum

Providing a dynamic new focus for contemporary art in the heart of Cambridge, this free annual installation of contemporary sculpture showcases work by some of the most talented artists working today.

Last year’s inaugural Sculpture Promenade, which closed on January 30, is widely regarded as having transformed not only the public perception of the Fitzwilliam Museum, but also the artistic landscape of Cambridge, already becoming a fixture in the city’s arts calendar.

The Fitzwilliam saw its visitor figures rise by more than 30 per cent following the opening of the Promenade, which attracted a high proportion of first-time visitors to both the installation and the Museum itself.

The 2010 Sculpture Promenade, like its predecessor, will feature recent sculpture by members of the Royal British Society of Sculptors (RBS). The sculptures will remain on display until January 2011.

Artists featured this year are Angela Conner, Ann Christopher, Mike Lyons, Nick Turvey, Nick Hornby and Rob Ward.

In contrast to last year’s event, the 2010 Promenade will present up to three sculptures by each artist, making this the largest sculpture installation yet seen on the spacious lawns of the Fitzwilliam.

Ranging from monumental works in bronze and steel to wind-driven, mobile forms, the 14 sculptures will once more transform the grounds of the Fitzwilliam, providing a striking complement to the Museum’s imposing neoclassical architecture.

The arrangement will invite passers-by and visitors to walk amongst the sculptures and experience them ‘up-close’.

The Promenade has once more been organised and selected by the Director of The Fitzwilliam Museum, Dr Timothy Potts, and the Cambridge-based sculptor Helaine Blumenfeld, former Vice-President of the RBS.

Dr Potts said: “We were delighted with the great success of the inaugural Sculpture Promenade last year, which brought contemporary art out onto the street and so many new visitors into the museum.

“The installation this year, which groups works by a single artist on each lawn and one under the portico, gives a broader view of each artist than before. They range from some of the most exciting young artists to major established figures, giving a snapshot of some of the most interesting work being created today.”

Helaine Blumenfeld said: “It was tremendously rewarding to see how, within only a few months of its inauguration, the initial Promenade had significantly altered people's perceptions of the Fitzwilliam Museum. The front lawns were transformed into a meeting place, an active and dynamic visitors' space: children were playing amongst the sculptures and people of all ages and
backgrounds were touching, photographing, discussing the work.

“This year, encouraged by the success of our first effort and by the public's clear appreciation of beauty, quality, craft and innovation, we have been more ambitious in the number and scale of the pieces we have chosen.”