The Kintyre Sculpture and Sir Antony Gormley
We are so lucky to have a unique and famous sculpture right on our doorstep. The abstract human form looks out over the Kilbrannan Sound to Arran from the rocks below Saddell Castle about 10 minutes away.
Gormley, who is most famous for the Angel of the North, made the sculpture in 2015 to celebrate 50 years of the Landmark Trust.
It was one of five placed at trust properties around the UK.
The life-sized figures, together known as Land, were originally to have remained in place until May 2016.
The other four were removed as planned in 2016 and were returned to the artist who will use them for future projects.
The Kintyre sculpture, called Grip, was the only one to get a permanent home in Saddell. It was purchased for the trust by an anonymous private donor for an undisclosed sum.
Gormley said: “There is an excitement about making a sculpture that can live out here amongst the waves and the wind, the rain and snow, in night and day.
“The sculpture is like a standing stone, a marker in space and time, linking with a specific place and its history but also looking out towards the horizon, having a conversation with a future that hasn’t yet happened.”
When I first saw it from a distance, I wondered how someone could remain so still. He stands alone, facing the sea and it really does stir your emotions within you in relation to the incredible landscape that surrounds him. Come and see for yourself what Grip does for you!
Caroline Stanford, who managed the Land installation, said: “Grip’s human scale and magical setting make it a deeply moving work by one of this generation’s finest artists.
“We are so grateful to our wonderful donor for enabling it to stay in Scotland for good.”
The Landmark Trust has owned Saddell Bay since 1975.
The five locations for the Land sculptures were
- Clavell Tower, Kimmeridge Bay, Dorset
- Lengthsman’s Cottage, Lowsonford, Warwickshire
- Lundy Island, Bristol Channel
- Martello Tower, Aldeburgh, Suffolk
This is a definite highlight and not to be missed!
