Maggi Hambling’s north London sculpture aimed to provoke debate – and a survey of passersby shows it has certainly done that
“It’s marvellous, I think it is unbelievably beautiful,” said Hilary Everett, a retired social worker, as she walked past one of the most controversial, most debated and most polarising public artworks of 2020.
But Michaela Crimmin, a reader in art passing by a few minutes later, disagreed: “I loathe it. There’s no aesthetic to it. This is one of the very few public outdoor spaces in our area and to put this there is very brazen. I object to the material, I object to the shape of it and I think the actual sculpture looks ridiculous on that plinth.”
