GLASGOW.- To mark the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), Glasgow – the event’s host city unveiled a newly commissioned public art installation by British designer Steuart Padwick. Reflecting on the imperatives of the ongoing climate crisis, the ‘Hope Sculptures’ are a gift from over 50 companies to Glasgow and an extraordinary feat of collaboration. Padwick’s designs are the result of conversations and collaborative efforts between engineers, environmentalists, writers, the construction industry, historians, scientists, mental health professionals, local community groups, urban planners, and filmmakers.

The Sculptures are now visible across three different historically significant locations and visitors are encouraged to access the sculptures via a walking and cycling route that connects the pieces. This ambitious project serves as a beacon of hope and positivity towards reaching global environmental milestones.

The central piece – ‘The Hope Sculpture’ – is a 23.5m-high structure towering over Clyde Gateway’s woodland park at Cuningar Loop. The monumental sculpture’s high slender columns take their form from the brick chimney stalks that once littered the East End of Glasgow. Unlike its predecessors, however, these are made from a new low-carbon and 100% cement-free concrete incorporating locally sourced aggregates and recycled crushed glass from Scotland. It is topped by a sculpture of a universal child with its arms reaching out to a hopeful future.

Meanwhile, the 4.5m-high ‘Beacon of Hope’ sculpture, is located at the city’s historic Glasgow Central Station. Made from contour like layers of FSC Scottish-grown Sitka Spruce, it celebrates the country’s expanding timber construction industry. Finally, the third sculpture — the ‘Hope Triptych’ – located at the University of Strathclyde’s Rottenrow Gardens, is a playful 3.5m-high adaptation of the child featured at the top of the columns and is composed of three colourful figures made from reclaimed sheet steel with a low carbon cement-free concrete foundation.

Working with Mental Health Foundation Scotland & NI, Padwick has collaborated with some of Scotland’s best-loved writers and poets — including Jackie Kay, Ali Smith, and 2020 Booker Prize winner Douglas Stuart – to incorporate some 30 poems directly onto all of the sculptures. What’s more, Padwick has teamed up with Glaswegian BAFTA winning filmmaker Hannah Currie to produce a thought-provoking film titled ‘A Conversation of Hope,’ which will launch during COP26.

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Hannah Currie, filmmaker, mental health activist and campaigner said, “Steuart Padwick’s hopeful and touching  Hope sculpture in my hometown of Glasgow – host to COP26 - is a place to reflect, to heal, and a symbol of the opportunity and hope arising from the challenges that face us all. It is a reminder of the power within each of us to make a difference to the earth.” 

Nigel Topping, UN High Level Climate Action Champion, COP26 said, “The monumental Hope sculpture is a powerful and much needed symbol of hope. It is a timely reminder that by taking better care of our environment we take better care of our own and our communities mental well-being.”

Councillor John Ross, Leader of South Lanarkshire Council, said: “The Hope Sculpture is a magnificent addition to the landscape of South Lanarkshire. It will serve as a very visible reminder of the care we all need to take to protect both our environment and our own mental health, and as such I truly believe it will indeed inspire hope in people in South Lanarkshire and beyond for generations to come.”

Cllr Susan Aitken, Leader of Glasgow City Council said, “The Hope sculpture will serve as a rousing reminder that the climate emergency has to be addressed and that together we, as a society, can forge a greener, healthier future for all Glaswegians.”

Dr Martin Valenti, Director for NetZero at the South of Scotland Enterprise said “Hope mobilises, and fear paralyses and this amazing sculpture represents the hopes of every individual who aspires to solve the  climate crisis. The  people of Scotland invite you to share our hope and to be relentless in your pursuit of a safer greener and fairer planet.” 

Martin McKay, Executive Director of Regeneration at Clyde Gateway, said: "With Glasgow hosting COP26, the UN's major climate change conference, I can think of nowhere better for the Hope Sculpture, which symbolises the hope of building a greener, healthier future, to call home than the East End of the city - an area that demonstrates that rapid transformations are possible. "Communities in Clyde Gateway are used to welcoming global visitors and I am confident they will be just as proud of this legacy of COP26, as they were of the Commonwealth Games in 2014."

Alison Monaghan MBE, from British Geological Survey said: “The Hope Sculpture stands in synchronicity with an innovative underground observatory just a few hundred metres away, repurposing old coal mine workings for renewable heat. Together they symbolise how we can re-imagine on our industrial legacy and look forward to a greener future.”

Dr Roddy Yarr, the Executive Lead of Sustainability at the University of Strathclyde, said “We are proud to host the Triptych Beacon at the heart of our campus and hope it will become a place for the entire University community to reflect on its message of hope. It’s fitting the sculpture, which is crafted from reclaimed metal, is sited here as it embodies the commitment of the University towards sustainability.”

Professor Sir Harry Burns, Director of Global Public Health at the University of Strathclyde, said “The Triptych Beacon reminds us all that even in the bleakest of times, we can offer a beacon of hope for the future. Hope empowers us to act, and by taking steps to protect the future of our global environment, we can also safeguard our physical and mental wellbeing.”