Monuments

Monument encapsulates memorial and enormity. Edifices in the landscape are of a time and convey meaning.

The Tinsley Viaduct and cooling towers on the M1 motorway between Sheffield and Rotherham evoke one of my earliest memories from the 1960s, when I would occasionally pass them with my father on our journey to northern football matches.

My prints, such as Monument and Drivepast (right), were inspired by the familiarity and passivity of the two cooling towers. As a child, they were foreign and awe-inspiring, but later, I would regularly drive past them at speed along with others who lived in Yorkshire or further north.

In the ‘90s, the viaduct became known as the ‘bridge of death’ when, as a musician driving to gigs in the south, we would come tearing down the M1 from Barnsley, building up speed to beat our speed record for crossing the bridge.

Perhaps more than anything, this monument reminds me of the 20 years I lived in Sheffield as a student, as part of a family, and setting out on my career in academia.

The 76m high cooling towers were demolished in 2008 to much protest.

Monuments, then, embody meaning, being connected to events or periods of time in general.