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Jasmine
and Bill and Bobby
Cathie Pilkington
At-Bristol undertook a major Public Art
commissioning programme linking the public open spaces themed around
reflection and exploration. The Public Art complements the rich
architectural heritage of the site and extends the themes of
Explore and the former Wildwalk
by encouraging people to look at the World in a new way. By animating
the public spaces the Public Art helps to create a unique urban space.
As
the public explore At-Bristol’s Open Spaces they may be surprised to see
out of the corner of their eye some Jack Russell terriers – one standing
just below the bus stops in front of Explore, and two others close to the
entrance of the Car Park. These are Jasmine,
Bill and Bob!
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Painted
bronze life-size sculptures by artist Cathie Pilkington, Jasmine
concentrates on creating the illusion of a real dog left in a public
space while Bill and Bob swim in
a puddle of blue rubber. By making use of humour and illusion, the
depicted narratives are called in to question - are Bill and Bob swimming
or sinking? Is Jasmine waiting
for her owner or abandoned?
This
is Cathie Pilkington’s first commission for a public space and from the
outset she was interested in making something very small, which might get
overlooked – the antithesis to much Public Art. She also wanted to make
something very ordinary.
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Jasmine,
Bill and Bob build
on Cathie Pilkington’s previous work with involves the depiction of
domestic animals as a vehicle to propose emotional and psychological
states. By placing dogs in specific contexts, she cleverly disturbs
initial sentimental reactions and turns them into something a little more
unsettling.
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