Sutton Manor – Dream

International artist Jaume Plensa has been commissioned to produce a spectacular new work for St.Helens, and has proposed Dream, a large-scale landmark piece of public art. Commissioned for St.Helens and the Northwest by a group of ex-miners as part of The Big Art Project, the work will stand 18 metres high, sited on top of the former Sutton Manor Colliery overlooking the M62, a gateway sculpture for both Merseyside and Greater Manchester.

The work takes the form of the head of a little girl with eyes closed, seemingly in a dream-like state.  It is the artist’s response to the brief and subsequent conversations with the ex-miners and members of the wider local community who wanted a work that looked to a brighter future and created a beautiful and contemplative space for future generations, not least their own grandchildren, at the top of the former spoil heap. It is to be fabricated in pre-cast concrete, with a very white, almost luminescent finish using a white marble/concrete aggregate mix in marked contrast to the black of the coal that still lies below.

The Big Art Project is an ambitious public art commissioning initiative from Channel 4 supported by Arts Council England. The Big Art Project in St.Helens is being delivered by St.Helens Council, in partnership with the national funders. The project is being curated by Liverpool Biennial, with the active involvement of a group of former miners from Sutton Manor Colliery, and supported by the Forestry Commission.

Born in Barcelona, Jaume has exhibited all over the world and completed major commissions in Canada, Israel, Japan, France, Germany, and the United States.  His most famous work is the dramatic  “Crown Fountain” in the centre of Chicago. Jaume’s public artworks in the UK include a laser beam light sculpture at the Baltic Arts Centre in Gateshead and, most recently, a spectacular new sculpted and illuminated glass dome for the BBC’s Broadcasting House HQ in London. 

For further information contact Laurie Peake: laurie@biennial.com