Templepatrick

Winning Commission

Three sculptures spread over the two roundabouts at either end of Templepatrick; two on the larger, oval roundabout number 1, that is the entry-point to the village when travelling from the M2, and a single, larger sculpture on the, circular roundabout number 2 after leaving Templepatrick and going on to the airport.

The first of these sculptures is ‘Swoosh’, viewed as cars approach the village from the motorway. It is a free-form depiction of the ‘possibilities’ of aerial departure; the representation of flight as a means to a myriad of possible destinations. The second sculpture on the same roundabout is ‘Swirl’, at the other end of the roundabout. It Is a single swirling flightpath, similar in form and material to the first sculpture, but this one is heavily grounded in the granite stonework structure from which the flightpath extends. The stonework shows a gradual progression from scattered boulders lying in the grass, through clumped rocks and rough-cut stones laid on top of one another.

The second roundabout traveller is greeted by ‘Soar’, a more prosaic and realistic representation of that which has, previously, merely been alluded to; an aeroplane. It is located in the centre of this circular roundabout, and it, too, is flying off into the sky; it is tilted upwards and to the side; rising and banking as it takes to the air. It is constructed of the same Corten-steel slat elements as the previous sculptures. It is the logical progression from the previous roundabout with its allusions of flight and flightpaths; here is a representation of the actual means of reaching the destinations the traveller is dreaming about.