Ronald Pope is a highly regarded sculptor, but has not been in the public eye. Sadly, because of this, his work is disappearing at an alarming rate – of almost sixty publicly displayed sculptural works, nearly half are missing. His work is at the mercy of owners ignorant of the quality of his sculpture, and has been destroyed when buildings have been refurbished or demolished. Even less attention is paid to the importance of the work to the local community, as part of its local heritage.
This problem is not just confined to the work of Ronald Pope, and without national recognition for public sculpture, and the protection it affords, we are will continue to lose a valuable and irreplaceable part of our heritage and history. Fortunately work has begun to try and remedy this uncomfortable truth. Before it disbanded the Public Monuments and Sculptures Association (PMSA) began a programme to record all public sculpture, and this work will hopefully be completed by its successor the Public Sculpture and Statues Association (PSSA). To date, 21 volumes have been published1,2, with more to follow. Now the UK has the beginnings of a ‘national gallery’ of public art, but there still remains no adequate network for alerting interested parties to theft, and natural or deliberate damage.
We need, therefore, to raise awareness of the importance of these works – to the people of local communities, to Local Authorities, to public and private institutions and politicians – and collectively we need in the UK a robust art culture. Perhaps we should adopt a new ethos of ownership where art is concerned. A sculpture may be privately owned, but its display in public brings it into the heart of the community, and as such perhaps the owners should be seen as not so much in possession, as caretaking for future generations.
Public art has a champion in the PSSA, but the campaign also needs public interest – your interest. Please let us (and the PSSA) have your views.