One morning I headed to Hyde Park to see a new artwork by Christo. On the way, though, where I got off the bus at Hyde Park Corner, is some public art all about war. The sculptures I saw take different approaches to the subject: one allegorical, one abstract, one depictng a leader, and one a weapon. One represents the eventual return of peace after war, two commemorate a particular category of people among those who died in war, and one honors someone who told other people what to do during battles, all of which were won by his side.
Atop Wellington Arch, a woman representing Peace rides in a chariot pulled by four horses. This “quadriga” was often used to represent Victory, but this sculpture’s name is Peace Descending on the Quadriga of War.
A group of pylons installed in 2006 commemorate people from New Zealand who died in the first and second world wars. A memorial to Australians sits not far away. Text by New Zealand writers and images of New Zealand animals, plants, and military icons decorate the pylons.
On the left, a memorial to soldiers in the Royal Regiment of Artillery killed during WWI takes the form of a howitzer. That weapon shoots things at a higher angle than a cannon, making it very useful when the people you’re shooting at are hiding in trenches. On the right stands one of the four soldiers guarding a statue of the Duke of Wellington on horseback. Wellington directed the forces that defeated Napoleon at Waterloo, ending twelve years of war against France.
Here’s the work by Christo. He’s most known for wrapping coastlines and buildings in fabric, and now he’s piling up oil barrels. He categorizes this work, the London Mastaba, built from 7,500 barrels, as a “temporary sculpture.” It’s a practice run at something he wants to build in Abu Dhabi out of 410,000 barrels.
While I’m happy to have seen it, I don’t find it particularly moving. The war-related sculptures were more interesting to me.
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