- Gillian Wearing will be the first woman to create a statue for Parliament Square
- The statue, of Suffragist leader Millicent Fawcett, will be the first female statue in the square when unveiled next year
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, announced today that Turner Prize-winning artist Gillian Wearing has been commissioned to create the statue of suffragist leader Millicent Fawcett in Parliament Square. Gillian will take this milestone project forward with funding from the Government, following the Prime Minister’s announcement of support for the statue earlier this month.
The statue will be both the first of a woman, and the first created by a woman, to stand in Parliament Square. It will be unveiled to coincide with the centenary celebrations of women’s suffrage in the UK.
Caroline Criado-Perez launched her campaign for a statue in Parliament Square in May 2016, with a change.org petition which was signed by almost 85,000 people. The Mayor has backed her campaign and has worked with Caroline to ensure the statue can be located in Parliament Square.
Gillian was selected following a rigorous process undertaken by the Suffrage Statue Commission, which included gallery directors, curators, cultural leaders and campaigners, chaired by Deputy Mayor for Culture and Creative Industries, Justine Simons.
Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “As a proud feminist at City Hall, I’m delighted to announce Gillian Wearing as the artist who will create the first-ever statue of a woman in Parliament Square, right in the heart of British democracy. It’s simply not right that, nearly a century after women’s suffrage, Parliament Square is still a male-only zone and I’m thrilled that this is soon to change, thanks to Caroline’s inspired campaign.
“This will be an historic moment for Parliament Square, and it’s fitting that the statue will be created by a world-class artist of Gillian’s calibre. A Turner Prize winner, life-time Royal Academician and recent nominee of the Human Rights Art Award, Gillian has the insight, passion and creativity to encapsulate how momentous and pivotal the suffrage movement was, as well as bringing across the sheer force and determination of the women who dedicated their lives to the fight for women’s suffrage. I have no doubt Gillian’s talent will do great justice to the movement and Millicent Fawcett’s legacy.”
Writer and activist, Caroline Criado-Perez, said: “I’m delighted to have the backing of Theresa May, the Mayor of London & Sajid Javid for my campaign to get the first statue of a woman in Parliament Square. Women make up more than half the population - but from looking at our public spaces, you would never know that. Just 2.7 per cent of British statues are of named women, and even these are mostly royals. The square outside Parliament recognises the achievement of great men who have shaped our democracy. But women belong in that story, too. One hundred years after the first women won the right to vote, it’s past time to start including them. It's also time to have our first statue by a female sculptor in Parliament Square and I'm thrilled that Gillian Wearing is going to be producing this historic artwork.
Artist Gillian Wearing said: “Millicent Fawcett was an incredible woman and by honouring her in Parliament Square I believe she will continue to inspire generations to come. I for one am truly grateful for her contribution towards securing the vote for women and I am really thrilled to be working on a monument for her.”
Jenny Waldman, Director, 14-18 NOW, said: "14-18 NOW is delighted to be commissioning a new statue with the Mayor of London and Government as a way to mark this iconic moment in women’s history. 14-18 NOW engages people with the centenary of the First World War through contemporary art; this new statue will be a wonderful way for people to remember the huge impact of the war on women's lives. We are particularly pleased that the Turner Prize-winning artist, Gillian Wearing, who is among the best-known and most internationally recognised of the recent generation of British artists, will undertake the commission to commemorate Millicent Fawcett and her pioneering role in campaigning for women to have the vote.”
Sam Smethers, Chief Executive of Fawcett Society, said: "Gillian Wearing is the ideal choice for Millicent Fawcett's statue. Her contemporary style will ensure the artwork is both relevant and personal.
"We want to thank the Mayor and his team for steering the project to this crucial and exciting stage."
Justine Simons OBE, Deputy Mayor for Culture and Creative Industries and Director of the Suffrage Statue Commission, said: “One hundred years ago women advocated, campaigned and fought bravely against a system that denied them their fundamental democratic rights. Honouring their struggle in Parliament Square could not be more appropriate and I’m delighted that we’ve commissioned Gillian to create this pivotal statue.
“Gillian’s proposal stood out in a range of excellent submissions from female artists. It successfully celebrates the leadership of one woman, while recognising the diversity and number of women who made up the suffrage movement. Her idea is a brilliant contemporary response to some of the more traditional components of Parliament Square. Seen from a distance, the subject will be instantly recognisable and those who get close will be rewarded with fascinating detail about the movement. It is a genuine privilege to play a part in celebrating these inspirational women.”
Gillian Wearing’s previous work includes A Real Birmingham Family, a bronze statue which depicted single-mother sisters Roma and Emma Jones and their children, which was unveiled in Birmingham’s Centenary Square in 2014.
The Mayor and the Government will work in partnership to deliver the statue. Plans will be submitted to Westminster City Council shortly, with a view to commencing work on the piece later this year.
ENDS
Notes to editors
Gillian Wearing was born 1963 in Birmingham. She lives and works in London.
The exhibition Behind the mask, another mask: Gillian Wearing and Claude Cahun is currently on view at the National Portrait Gallery, London. Wearing also has a solo show opening at The National Gallery of Denmark, Copenhagen in October this year.
Recent solo exhibitions include Sandra and Gerald Fineberg Art Wall, ICA Boston, 2016; Instituto Valenciano de Arte Moderno, IVAM, Valencia, 2015; A Real Birmingham Family, Centenary Square, Library of Birmingham. Birmingham, 2014; We Are Here, The New Art Gallery Walsall, Walsall, 2013; Whitechapel Gallery, London, toured to K20, Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Dusseldorf and Pinakothek der Moderne, Museum Brandhorst, Munich, 2012; A Real Birmingham Family, Ikon Gallery, Birmingham, 2011; Confessions: Portraits, vidéos, Musée Rodin, Paris, 2009; Living Proof, ACCA, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne, 2006.
Solo publications include Gillian Wearing, Whitechapel Gallery and Ridinghouse, London, 2012; Family History, Film and Video Umbrella and Maureen Paley, London, in association with Artists in the City, Reading and Ikon Gallery, Birmingham, 2007; Living Proof, ACCA, Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne, 2006; Mass Observation, Merrell, London / New York, and Museum Of Contemporary Art Chicago, Chicago, 2002; A Trilogy, Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver, 2002; Broad Street, Gillian Wearing, Museu do Chiado, Lisbon, 2001; Gillian Wearing - Sous influence, Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris, 2001; Gillian Wearing, Centro Galego de Arte Contemporánea (CGAC) and Fundación la Caixa, Barcelona, Santiago de Compostela, 2001; Unspoken, Kunstverein München, Munich, 2001; Gillian Wearing, Serpentine Gallery, London, 2000.
Gillian Wearing is represented by Maureen Paley, London; Tanya Bonakdar, New York and Regen Projects, Los Angeles.
Gillian Wearing won the Turner Prize in 1997 and was awarded an OBE in 2011.
Caroline Criado-Perez is a writer, broadcaster and award-winning feminist campaigner. She is published across the major national media and regularly appears in both print and broadcast as a commentator. Her first book, Do it Like a Woman, was published by Portobello in 2015 and was chosen by Bridget Christie as one of her books of the year in the Guardian. She is currently working on her second book, which will be about the gender data gap. Caroline has a degree in English language and literature from the University of Oxford, and is completing an MSc in Gender at LSE, focusing on behavioural and feminist economics. She was the 2013 recipient of the Liberty Human Rights Campaigner of the Year award, and was named OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours 2015.
Caroline Criado-Perez’s campaign was launched in May 2016 via a change.org petition: https://www.change.org/p/westminster-council-put-a-statue-of-a-suffragette-in-parliament-square#response-34643
About 14-18 NOW
14-18 NOW is a programme of extraordinary arts experiences connecting people with the First World War, as part of the UK’s official centenary commemorations. It commissions new work by leading contemporary artists from all art forms. The commemorative period is marked by three key seasons - Anniversary of the Declaration of War in 2014, the anniversary of the Battle of Jutland and the Battle of the Somme in 2016, and the centenary of Armistice Day in 2018. 14-18 NOW is responsible for the UK tour of the iconic poppy sculptures by artist Paul Cummins and designer Tom Piper, and ‘We’re here because we’re here’ by Jeremy Deller in collaboration with Rufus Norris.
14 -18 NOW is supported by the National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund and Arts Council England, by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and by additional fundraising. 14-18 NOW has commissioned over 140 artworks to date that have been seen by more than 30 million people.
Suffrage Statue Commission
(Chair) Justine Simons, Deputy Mayor for Culture and Creative Industries
Jenny Waldman, Director 1418 NOW
Caroline Criado-Perez, campaigner
Tamsin Dillon, Curator 1418 NOW
Melanie Keen, Director Iniva,
Sally Shaw, Director Firstsite Colchester
Statues currently situated in Parliament Square
Wornum's scheme incorporated the line of existing London plane trees on the west side of the Gardens and placed three of the four existing statues of 19th century politicians on new pedestals along a raised terrace, bordered by Portland stone walled planters and large jardinières. These three statues are:
Sir Robert Peel (1788-1850), Prime Minister, Home Secretary and founder of the Metropolitan Police. Sculptor: Matthew Noble. Listed Grade II (erected in 1876 and moved to this position by Grey Wornum in 1949).
Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Beaconsfield (1804-1881), Prime Minister, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Leader of the House. Sculptor: Mario Raggi. Listed Grade II (erected in 1883 and moved to this position by Grey Wornum in 1949).
The Earl of Derby (1799-1869), Prime Minister, classicist and biblical commentator. Sculptor: Matthew Noble. Listed Grade II (erected in 1874 and moved to this position by Grey Wornum in 1949).
Northwest corner of the Gardens and on the axis from the North Door of Westminster Abbey:
Lord Palmerston (1784-1865), Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary. Sculptor: Thomas Woolner. Listed Grade II (erected in 1876 and moved to this position by Grey Wornum in 1949).
Field Marshal Jan Smuts, (1870-1950) a philosopher, he studied law in Cambridge, became Prime Minister of South Africa, was co-opted on to Lloyd George’s 1914-18 War Cabinet, helped draft the covenant of the League of Nations, in 1941 became a British Field Marshal, and was frequently consulted by Churchill during World War II. Smuts suffered moral defeat at the hands of Gandhi in the aftermath of the Natal Miners Strike but later went on to respect Gandhi’s achievements. Sculptor: Jacob Epstein. Listed Grade II.
The next memorial to be erected (in 1973), on a site at the east end of the north terrace was:
Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965), historian, orator, First Lord of the Admiralty in both World War I and World War II, when as Prime Minister and chief director of the war effort, his speeches contributing greatly to the maintenance of morale during the war years. Sculptor: Ivor Roberts-Jones Listed Grade II. In his 1949/50 layout, the architect Grey Wornum had earmarked this site for Churchill’s public memorial and created it deliberately for this purpose.
2007 saw the erection of the next two memorials. On the north terrace, between Sir Winston Churchill and Field Marshal Jan Smuts:
David Lloyd George (1863-1945), Prime Minster, Chancellor of the Exchequer and Minister of Munitions during World War 1, where he was to acquire the reputation of the man who led the nation to victory through the power of his oratory. Sculptor: Glynn Williams (erected in 2007).
South west corner of the Gardens at the lower level of the terrace steps and Portland stone planter walls:
Nelson Mandela (1918-2013), Anti-apartheid activist with the ANC, committed to peaceful protest following the inspiration of Gandhi. South Africa’s first black President. Sculptor: Ian Walters.
Followed in 2014, also set at the lower level but within reconfigured Portland stone planter walls, between Nelson Mandela and Field Marshal Jan Smuts:
Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948), led India to independence from the British Empire and inspired non-violent civil rights movements around the world. Campaigned to ease poverty, expand women’s rights and end untouchability. Sculptor: Philip Jackson.
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