Sculpture in the Workplace

By Louisa Emery on January 14, 2010 1:10 PM |

Tagged with:

Michael Stipe, Bill Nighy and Glenda Jackson are among the famous faces to be found in the lobby of One Canada Square from this week. Immortalised in clay they are part of a collection of figurative pieces by artist Glenys Barton.

The sculptor originally trained as a dancer at the Laban Dance Centre, now based in Deptford. And it was there her fascination with people's bodies first developed.

She said: "I suppose my interest in the human form started with dance and the feel of moving my own body while thinking about choreography.

"I was Laban trained and taught children to dance for a short time before I went to the Royal College of Art to study sculpture."

The celebrity portraits are often commissions as with Bill Nighy, Bill Nighy I No. 2, made for the film Enduring Love or in the case of Michael Stipe Daysleeper III No.3, inspired by listening to his music.

This piece demonstrates a new way of working for Glenys who used images and video downloaded the internet to create it.

The display in Canary Wharf marks another departure. She said: "I was really excited to have a chance to show in a different context so very different from that of an art gallery and, in particular, the corporate environment, which has provided an extended audience for my work."

She has created sculpture specifically for the site and reworked other pieces. Glenys said:
"Shard Portraits, Reaching Out and Drawings have all been made for this exhibition and displayed in response to the space.

"Both Shard Portraits and Reaching Out are shown here in completely new configurations in this setting."

Getting the exhibition to One Canada Square has also had its own challenges.
Not content with closing schools and causing commuter chaos, the icy weather has also meant some of Glenys's art has yet to be installed.

The temperature has so far been too cold to attach work to the windows.
Glenys said: "It's really important to have the work up there in time for the private view. Three figures in the show relate directly to pieces that will be seen on the opposite window of the lobby."

The private view of Glenys' work will take place on Tuesday, January 19.
Free tickets for the event can be reserved by contacting Canary Wharf Group's Public Art Office.

Glenys Barton, Lobby One Canada Square, to Mar 19, FREE, 020 7477 1477, mycanarywharf.com, DLR & Jubilee: Canary Wharf