St.Mungo-on-the-Tron

( launched 23 October 2003)

   

A kinetic sculpture of Glasgow patron-saint at the ancient Tron Steeple adjusted to the clock to chime on an hour - our first outside commission and first town clock with mechanical figure in Scotland. It was created by the team of makers:

In the evening sculpture is lit by constantly changing colour lights (fibre-optic devised was suggested by lighting designer Patrick Ecsdale).

.The story of the project

This project took three years and efforts of many people to become a reality. It was set in motion in 2000 by enthusiastic Ewan who then worked for Glasgow Building Preservation Trust - he had seen the Millennium Clock and suggested us to supply a proposal for kinetic sculpture which could be included in the plan of  of the Tron Steeple reviving. The Steeple happened to be 100 meters from our gallery and idea to put something there sounded seducing...

Than Ewan moved to the Merchant City Initiative and miniature Alison Tanner took the project further. Later we had a chance to discover that she is a reliable and persistent fighter for a cause, pressing forward in the situations where many would just drop a case.

In 2001 we won a competition for the commission. Our proposal was a kinetic sculpture of St.Mungo, founder of Glasgow, to be installed at the Steeple, facing Trongate and Argyle Street under the big clock face.

For non-glaswegians: a story of St.Mungo can be found on http://www.glasgow.gov.uk/html/about/crest/crest.htm 

or http://www.rampantscotland.com/famous/blfammungo.htm

or in depth at  http://www.cushnieent.force9.co.uk/saintscat2.html

 

 

   First drawings for application were kindly produced (as in case of Millennium Clock) by Maggy Lenert Stead, who tried to guess what Eduard had in mind - or at least to intrigue a committee enough to get money.
 

Then Eduard made a working model,

then was a year break -

till all paperwork on Tron Steeple was in place
  The original project was for a small first floor window - and it should be a small wooden figure which would appear from inside twice a day to chime for a minute. But the window turned to be fake (a late 18 century addition) - and we switched to much bigger second floor window which led to much more ambitious project.

 

We went to see places were Celtic Saints - these passionate wanderers - lived and preached: Iona and Lindisfarne. We discovered that they actually went as far as our native North of Russia - and because they did not belong to Roman Church, some Russians consider them as a part of Ortodox Church. But comparing the images of Book of Kells, Lindisfarne Gospel and icons from Novgorod  we got a feeling that world was a small place many centuries ago...

In a while  St.Mungo began to dictate Eduard how he wants to look like
 

Funds from the project came from different sources - Glasgow Building Preservation Trust, Glasgow Lord Provost Millennium Fund, and two local businesses - our old friends "Cafe Gandolfi" and blacksmith A.L.Sillars (without whom we would not built The Millennium Clock) - the latest two have been the art sponsors for the first time - and it led to the matching grant from Art and Business New Partners. 

 

Glasgow City Council have donated  an oak trunk for a figure - but after the torrential rains of the summer 2002 it became clear that sculpture should be made of metal. Naturally it means a substantial increase of the costs -  but fortunately the trustees of Gordon Fraser Charitable Trust (one of the sponsors of the Millennium Clock) have come to rescue.

Their grant paid for the head,  hands and feet which Eduard originally made in wood to be cast in bronze
  A young metal artist Bryony Knox transferred the bird and fish in metal and made leaves for St.Mungo's "tree"

 

The programme box and electrical control were made by Sergey Jakovsky. 

Andrew  Sillars and his incredible company installed the sculpture on the Steeple. Andrew had to invent a complicated system of counterweights as Eduard's mechanics were designed for wood and not for the heavy bronze cast. (Here you can see just a part of the team: Alison, David , St.Mungo, Eduard and Andrew)

The inevitable  question has been arisen:  why we, newcomers from far away, have suggested to make a kinetic St.Mungo? Maybe although  in our childhood we did not sing  the famous Glasgow rhyme:

Here is the bird that never flew.

Here is the tree that never grew.

Here is the bell that never rang.

Here is the fish that never swam,

 

but  we came from the country which had a sad experience of cutting off the past. So we wanted to let the bird fly, the tree grow, the bell ring and the fish swim again...

 

Sponsors of  “St.Mungo-on-the Tron”

 

Glasgow City Council Lord Provost's Millennium Fund

Gordon Fraser Charitable Trust

Art and Business New Partners

Café Gandolfi

A.L.Sillars

 

A.L.Sillars, Cafe Gandolfi and Friends of  SHARMANKA have received an investment from Arts & Business New Partners to further develop their creative partnership. 

Arts & Business New Partners is funded by the Arts Council of England and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

 

 

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