Windrush monument: selecting an artist
An update on work beginning to find the artist for the landmark Windrush monument.
Background
MHCLG are commissioning a significant and permanent national monument to the Windrush Generation at London Waterloo Station to recognise how they have enriched our nation’s history. It will be a tribute to a generation of arrivals from the Caribbean to this country – from the arrival of MV Empire Windrush in 1948 and in the decades that followed.
The monument will be an ambitious public artwork that stands as a testament to the contribution of Caribbean pioneers in communities across the United Kingdom. It will create a permanent place of reflection and inspiration and be a visible statement of our shared history and heritage.
The project is being overseen by MHCLG and led by the Windrush Commemoration Committee (WCC), chaired by Baroness Floella Benjamin DBE.
The monument will be erected in London Waterloo Station and is expected to be unveiled on Windrush Day 2022. Alongside the monument, MHCLG will be developing work to bring together the experiences of Windrush pioneers and champions, building on the many stories gathered by projects funded so far by the Windrush Day Grant Scheme.
The location of the monument has been carefully considered to recognise its status as a national tribute to the diverse Windrush Generation and their descendants who arrived from across the Caribbean. London Waterloo Station is strongly associated with the stories of many members of the Windrush Generation. It stands at a point where thousands of Windrush pioneers first arrived in London before moving on to their new homes across the UK.
Baroness Floella Benjamin DBE:
I remember vividly my own moment of arrival, as a 10 year old – stepping off the train and standing on Platform 19 at Waterloo Station. That spot, familiar to so many of us and our parents, is less than a few hundred metres from where the Windrush monument will stand in perpetuity.
Selecting an artist
Over the next 8 months the Windrush Commemoration Committee will be working to identify and recommend an artist to lead on designing this national monument. This will involve public engagement over the summer on a shortlist of proposals submitted by artists.
With the endorsement of the Windrush Commemoration Committee members, MHCLG has appointed UP Projects to manage the process of selecting the artist who will design and construct this important monument. UP Projects were appointed because of their track record of producing and curating contemporary art for public spaces and their experience of working collaboratively with communities and artists to make work that has social relevance and enriches the public sphere.
UP Projects will begin by engaging in conversations with British Caribbean community stakeholders and leaders in the UK’s cultural sector which will inform a longlist of artists. A group of suggested artists from this list that fit the curatorial criteria will then be assembled into a shortlist. UP Projects will be looking for artists who have the ability and experience to create a landmark civic monument. The Windrush Commemoration Committee is also keen to appoint an artist who has lived experience of the Windrush legacy and an interest in engaging with British Caribbean communities.
Each shortlisted artist will present their proposal via a short film and these films will be disseminated via extensive community networks. Over summer 2021, the public, particularly the British Caribbean community will be encouraged to consider the proposals. Their views will be taken into consideration by the Windrush Commemoration Committee as they make their final selection
Key facts and figures
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MHCLG has announced a £1 million budget towards a Windrush monument to be constructed within London Waterloo Station.
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The Windrush Generation has come to be defined as those people who emigrated from the Caribbean to Britain between the arrival of the MV Empire Windrush on 22 June 1948 and the Immigration Act 1971. The monument will be a tribute to them, their descendants, and the wider British Caribbean community.
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UP Projects curates and commissions contemporary art in the public domain. Founded in 2002 by Emma Underhill, the charity’s mission is to support artists to make new work that has social relevance, encourages learning and enriches the public sphere.
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UP Projects makes work that is relevant to the places they work in and people that they work with. They take time to understand who their diverse audiences are, and what their needs and aspirations are. UP Projects works collaboratively with a broad range of both public and private-sector partners including major public bodies, significant cultural institutions, cultural festivals, and research and learning facilities. Collaboration is central to the work that UP Projects do and the way that they work.