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- Local newspaper week
Have your say on Quantum Leap
Thursday 1st October 2009, 1:30PM BST.
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Shrewsbury’s controversial Quantum Leap sculpture was unveiled for the first time to a mixed reaction from people in the town.
The piece of art and a Darwin Memorial Garden in Mardol Quay have been created to celebrate Charles Darwin and mark the 200th anniversary of his birth.
The sculpture has come under fire from taxpayers after Shropshire Council agreed to increase the budget for the work to more than £450,000.
John Greybrook, from Copthorne, said: “I think it is an appalling and utter waste of taxpayers’ money. A big statue of Darwin would have been far more appropriate compared to this seriously awful thing.”
Dave Edwards, of The Mount, added: “It’s pathetic, a real waste of taxpayers’ money, I can’t get over how ugly it is.”
But Doug Blackmore, owner of Frank’s Cafe Bar in Frankwell, said he thought it would bring more people into the town.
Talking
He said: “It is doing its job already because everybody is talking about. I think everybody who reads the Shropshire Star will want to see it for themselves and what they think of the money spent on it.
“That will bring people from across the county to the area and they will spend their money here – so we will make the cost back eventually.”
Simon Airey, president of the Shrewsbury Business Chamber, said: “It is fantastic, I have been hoping for something like this for a while and I think it is an excellent piece of art.”
Karen Lloyd, secretary and development officer for Shrewsbury Civic Society, said the group had mixed views. “As a society we have always been in favour of public art and something to celebrate Charles Darwin.
“However, what concerns us about the Quantum Leap is the time it took and the spiralling cost.”
- At 9am on Wednesday, October 7 the results — including postal votes — stood at:
- Quantum Leap is worth the money: 1,028 (48 per cent)
- Quantum Leap is not worth the money: 1,118 (52 per cent)
- See the poll story here
As the sculpture was being unveiled, the crane used in the construction was used to bring a 100-year-old ferry wheel from the depths of the River Severn.
Jan Hordley, of Shrewsbury Marine Service, said she had been hoping to get the wheel out for some time.
She added: “The very kind and helpful workmen said they would help us and we are very grateful.
“The ferry used to take people from one side of the river to the other and we want to restore the wheel from it and make it a piece of public art – so this is one positive from the Quantum Leap work.”
Randal Keynes, the great great grandson of the scientist, was due to formally dedicate the 12-metre high statue on October 8.
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Very impressed, a great asset to Shrewsbury.
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well i dnt knw wat ppl think but i thibk its a waste of us tax payers money, this goverment has wasted money wen they could invest in building more houses for the homless and ppl that need sum were or used to improve other sectors that need the money
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What a laugh, to think this would bring more people into the town. I think not!
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We can always rely on our elected politicians, both national and local, to waste their taxpayers hard-earned money.
Hopefully the next major flood will wash this seriously ugly piece of nonsense away.
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It might of worked if they’d used more inspiring materials.Concrete!utter rubbish.£450k,where’d the other£449,999 go?
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The money spent on the Quantum leap project, could of gone to helping the elderly in the community.
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Where is the rest of the mammoths skeleton? I wonder if the Severn will flood this winter then mother nature may decide on this concrete monstrosity! Flush it down the Severn, it’s close enough! It’s ugly and about as innovative as a calf pickled in formaldahide.
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I have kept quite for the last couple of weeks because what has been writen by the Star has been so far from the truth it is a joke, ie the fact that the stucture was only 5mm out not 18″ as claimed and yet again they can not get any article on this right.But why let the truth get in the way of a headline. Watch the vidio above. The stucture dose not claim to relect DNA or a double helix. The parts from the river were from the winding gear of the old ferry not from a ship.
Why not just shut up Shropshire Star now until the project is complete ie the rock clock is installed and the path ways formed. Or carry on turning out the same old tripe.
Quick Shropshire Star a cat has been run over in Ludlow this must mean the end of cats as we know them!!!
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TAKE IT DOWN AND USE IT FOR TRANSPORT FOR THE ELDERLY AND DISABLED
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Reading the comments on the poll it seems that the Star will not print comments against them or surporting the project. Is that freedom of speach or just the act of a bullie ??
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It also seems that you have refused to put up the comment I made ointing out the mistakes and untruths in the vidio what are you afraid of Star?
Could it be that pepole wil;l realise how poor your reporting has been on this subject ??
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The Quantum Leap sculpture will bring much needed visitors to our Shire Town which, I believe will only enhance the tourism of our county. Sure it can be seen as a large outlay by our council but people should look at the big picture with our leisure industry being one of this courtries largest growth areas and one not to be belittled in any way.
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This expensive eyesore is a typical example of how local councillors waste our money.
Please could the Shropshire Star print the names of those councillors who voted for this monstrosity, and those who voted even more money to pay for it so we can vote them out at the next council election.
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One word……Eyesore!
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What a waste of money if the council had that amount of money to spend why not spend it on the hospital or the welfare of the elderly.Some say we should be proud of it well i’m not proud of a heap of concete
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That £450K keeps on growing with the now increased and probably unforeseen(and therefore unplanned) cost of security – a one off cost or a year on year cost – who knows?
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Well all i can say is another waste of money and eyesore, to join that of the theatre and council building.
But as long as we keep paying our council tax, the council will keep wasting our money.
Im sure the money could have been better spent on things like our schools. My 2 children go to primary school, and they are forever having to do fund raising events as they dontt get money from the council.
Now we know why!
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Why not pay some contractors about £200,000 of tax payers money to remove Darwins Gate from Shoplatch and place it next to the new Darwins Memorial and then when the river floods hopefully they will both washed away.
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Oh my God, shock, horror, someone tried to climb it ? Surely not, and to think that nobody could see that coming.
I am now in the position to say publicly, ‘I told you so’.
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Personally I don’t mind it too much. I may even grow to like it. I’m sure that in the opinion of many the money could’ve been better spent on a statue or on other services. I have to acknowledge that investment in education could be an option to consider given the appalling spelling and grammer in post 2, and that a contributor to this exchange (and also someone on TV) feels that “might of” is acceptable as opposed to the correct “might have” or “might’ve”
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I’m autistic, and I’ve been out of school for 3 months… They say they haven’t got enough funding to pay for my care needs and for me to learn…
*looks pointedly at poopy statue*
Wonder why that could be???!!
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It looks like a giant slinky to me, cannot for the life of me see how it could possibly relate to Darwin.
Another total waste of taxpayers hard earned cash…instead of spending it on something that might actually be useful, they built this monstrosity!
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what a complete waste of time and money, the thing looks damn awful! Looks like its been made from concrete,possibly the dullest material on the planet! Honestly, with the financial situation the country is going through,was it really deemed necessary to build this monstrosity in a town where everyone already knows of Darwin due to the signs as you enter the town,the shopping centre and the statue?!
Simon-most of your post is you burning the guy who did the second post-well done clearly showing your vast knowledge and maturity there!
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How many of those who voted for the sculpture only did so by looking at the artists impression and not the ugly concrete monstrosity that will be in our faces for ever!
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Will you people please stop whinging! Every story i’ve read about the sculpture had been followed by a load of sad individuals moaning on about it. If you don’t like it you don’t have to look at it. You people are like predictable sheep……winge winge….tax payers money…..winge winge….council tax rises. It’s this backward, scared of change attitude that’s turning shrewsbury into a ghost town.
You folks that moan about the cost of it during a recession are missing the point. People have been employed to construct it, people were employed to make and deliver the materials, equipment, etc. To end a recession money had to be spent.
Lastly – I don’t have any kids, I don’t claim any benefits & I have private healthcare. I’m an employed tax payer in Shrewsbury so I’m quite prepared for the council to use the tax money taken from me, for schooling my kids, claiming benefits and using the NHS, into the sculpture budget. There, does that make you people feel better?
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what a waste of money,there are far more needy things that could have been done with the money.its not even nice to look at.the only thing it will be remembered for will be the number of people who climb it.(leap being the word…..)
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I think that such a large amount of money has been wasted on the Slinky, I think that some nice clean easy to get into type toilets – at suitable places in the town would have been a better use for our money. Nice toilets even if we had to pay 10p to use them would be better than the terrible smelly dungeons we have to go into now, not nice for ladies and kids.
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What a waste of money yet to speak too anyone who likes it.Just a big joke money could have been spent on alot better things.
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More of a concrete heap than a quantum leap.
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Shahn the sheep. What planet are you from? The recession obviously means nothing to you as you seem to have money to burn if you don’t mind it being spent on a concrete – for that’s what it is- so called work of art to celebrate Charles Darwin. If were you I would get back to the comfort of your farmyard and let the rest of the real world go by!
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It doesn’t really matter whether a majority of people are for this project or against it. The fact is that it is here to stay and the money has been already been spent.
The fact that a few notable worthies (you know who you are), got together to push this thing through to completion with no real objections from any quarter seems to have been forgotten by most people.
Yes the proper consultation process was followed and the public was given a chance to have their say. The powers that be know that the majority of the ‘ordinary’ citizens’ they claim to represent won’t kick up too much of a fuss about this type of ‘non’ event (they’re too busy getting on with their lives), allowing them to achieve what they want and then claim it’s for our benefit!
This is exactly what has happened with both of the Darwin art projects. Neither is actually necessary but they were justified by people claiming that the town ‘needed’ this type of modern, go-getting, in your face challenge to prove that we are up there with the city slickers and not provincial bumkins who lack finesse and class.
Amazingly enough this was all done with a straight face and an earnest keenness that would have put Bertie Wooster to shame.
When it comes to spending other people’s money, Shrewsbury is in a class of it’s own. Want a new theatre? No problem, in fact have two! Want a commerative tribute/shrine to Charles Darwin? No problem, lets have two again (and that’s not including the statue we have already)!!
In my view we don’t need sculptures or statues that cost vast sums of taxpayers money. We need clean hospitals, safe streets, nurses, kidney machines, police officers etc etc etc. We could have had so much more, but what did we end up with? A giant, concrete Witchetty Grub whom, having been appalled by the pointless art work thingy at the top Mardol had struggled down to the river in a last ditch attempt to chuck himself in and end it all. We should be so lucky!
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Only one thing to say… Charles Armstrong must be in cloud cuckoo land. How that sculpture can be costed out to near half a million pounds?! It’s concrete.
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All that money for a giant slinky? Oh dear
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I think the money could have been used elsewhere. The structure itself is the wrong colour, it was meant to be a brilliant white and has turned out to be a dull grey. I think its a complete waste of time and money.
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What amazes me is that people can be so anti and the thing isn’t even finshed yet?
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So now the comments that the Star would not publish but were allowed by the poll organisers have been removed. :(
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Is this a bad time to tell everyone I never stepped foot in Shrewsbury?
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You were born here, Mr Darwin.
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i really like it! its about time some people opened their eyes to change. whats wrong with having some artwork and sculptures to liven this sleepy backwater town up! the daily mail brigade with their small town mentalities love a moan! viva le quantum leap!
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I’ll give it till the new year before it’s vandalised!! A new youth club would have seen the money better spent.
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I’d love to have a “view” on the Darwin sculpture but, due to it being totally surrounded by trees, i am unable to see it and therefore can hardly pass comment. Can anyone lend the council a chainsaw ?.
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I like it.
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Saw it for the first time this weekend, it is challenging and clearly thought-provoking.
I think that it is a perfect tribute to a man whose ideas were just the same!
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Absolute waste of tax-payers money, but the same old story, money will be wasted by councils, because it is not their money and the tax-payer never has a say. Where do they think their wages come from.
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I can see it ending up being a place for all those lovely people with their Diamond White and dogs on a string to try and settle.
Waste of time and money.
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I think this is a great asset to Shrewsbury and looks modern and very impressive, at last something that’s NOT mock Tudor. I’m glad it has generated so much interest (good & bad), yes it has cost more than expected but that’s past-tense and its here to stay – Artwork and sculptures, like shops and pubs, bring in much needed visitors…
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This one does look like an excessive amount of money but generally if it cost 10p people tend to complain about sculpture. Yes, the NHS needs money, so do public services etc but they are bottomless pits – addressing the waste seen in needless quangos and red tape would soon aid that. If we took the argument to a logical conclusion towns would be very drab places to live in. Whatever happened to old-fashioned civic pride and making towns places people actually enjoy visiting, with spin-offs to local trade?
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Awful the thought that we all contributed towards that monstrousity is sickening. If the person responsible for this had asked most people’s opinion before giving it the go ahead then I imagine it wouldn’t have been built and that the money would have gone towards something much more need in the community. I hope the person responsible for this thing can’t sleep at night.
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One advantage of the monument to a punctured melodian is that it helps hide the big shed, i.e theatre , when viewed from Mardol! Who ever is responsble for this playground for drunks will have the responsilty for any deaths resulting from their joint stupidity.
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horrible, ugly and dangerous. another example of our money being used without our consent or approval.
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I have no objection to public art in principle, but it does need to be carefully chosen and sited.
Quantum Leap is in completely the wrong place and in a cramped and unsuitable site – rather likethe theatre opposite. To be shown to any advantage this should have been in an large open space with open views, not surrounded by trees on a river bank prone to flooding.
The sculpture itself appears lumbering and unattractive as you would expect from dun coloured concrete. I doubt very much whether Quantum Leap will have the predicted economic benefits of drawing in flocks of eager art buffs and tourists.
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The sculpture looks pretty thought prevoking. Nice design, good use of a wonder material – concrete, but how can it have cost so much?! And I don’t appreciate our elected councillors airing their one-sided views in a peoples poll, denegrating the paper who are hosting it! Sad. Get back to the Ivory Towers with sound proofed walls.
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well i think the public have answered that question! at least it’s inkeeping with the rest of the recent council projects..council offices,theatre,multi coloured sheep.do they really think these are inkeeping with a old market town ,when this council goes bust,i will laugh my head off !
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Sad muppet if you mean me then you do not know I am not a Cllr. as I did not stand in June. I can now speak my mind and point out the way the Star likes to report. Another example of this was last nights paper were on page 10 they claim more are against in the poll than for. Yet if you look at the results 53% are for 47% against. The Star is the one-sided party on this.I am happy that not all get or like QL for if everyone did it would not be worth building. WHEN it is finished at the start of November you will then be able to see the overall effect rather than the part effect you can see now. But hay why let the facts get in the way of a good “story”.God only knows what people would say if they knew that over the last five years over 7 million pounds was spent on community projects such as play grounds , village halls and other community activities by the SABC. or was this a waste of money as well. Take a step backwards. Look at the bigger picture and you might see what it is.
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The report was accurate and combined the results of the internet poll and the postal ballot.
Andrew Owen
shropshirestar.com
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Mmmm, seems to me that previous comments here that talked about the vote percentages have disappeared. Must have been a sack full of no votes in the post for the Star.
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Andrew
This postal ballet then. How many “ballots” were cast then. Were was it advertised?
Are you tell us that more than 170 pepole voted against in this psotal ballet than for it? Taking your figures last night were over 2,000 votes with no mention of the “postal” element of the ballet.
You will be able to show me these returns no doubt so plaese let me know when I can pop in to see them.
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The poll results, with comments for and against, can be seen here:
http://www.shropshirestar.com/2009/10/07/poll-says-darwin-art-a-waste-of-money/
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Mr Armstrong, I fear your comments may be somewhat futile as the majority of Shropshire Star readers will not get the “bigger picture”. This is because it does not involve anything to with teenage pregancy, asbo’s, burberry knock offs, claiming benefits, X factor or hoodies.
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Stop knocking this brilliant piece of street art. It will be there for many years to come and from all angles looks brilliant. Cutting the verges on the riverside would make even more of an impact . Thank you for this brilliant artwork. Re. the cost….how much did the other Darwin statue cost in its day? Money well spent in it’s day too.
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I LOVE THE QUANTUM LEAP.
Please stop whinging be proud of this excellent piece of art.
Give it time to mellow and be pleased that Charles Darwin was born in Shrewsbury and will in future bring people into the town.
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yes it will bring more people into town; to have a good laugh.
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This will be my third attempt to comment about this though mine and many others on the polldaddy comments section (which apparently had to be removed by the Star) were in general quite positive.
Looking at the money aspect the referendum regarding the unitary council £50,000, then judicial review £200,000 followed by the ex chief executives pay off, all amounted to the same cost as the sculpture but we got nowt in return.
The pay rise that the new councillors awarded themselves which was for town councillors a 100% increase and for rural councillors a 150% increase would have also equalled the cost of the sculpture for their first year of office.
At least like it or hate it we have got something “concrete” in return. (excuse the pun!)
I am glad that some more informed people sad muppet for instance, understand that concrete is a historical and valuable material and it does take expertise to acheive the lightness and curvaceous qualities exhibited in this design.
It is a material the pious and rigid Victorians found threatening though they understood it’s potential. It was used but had to be clad and covered up lest it’s Pagan origins could influence the natural world. They could not see then that it’s value in road building would lead to unimaginable freedom for travel in the future.
I think in this sense it was an ideal material for the sculpture, its testing boundaries as Darwin was to do and also it’s connection with Shropshire as the aggregates used in the composition are all from this county.
I do think the potential problems of vandalism and it’s siting were not considered adequately and the knee jerk reaction subsequently of filling in the two ends have compromised the design considerably.
The fact that it blots out the view of the horrible theatre from some directions also has to be a plus.
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….can’t wait to see it working. When is the big switch-on?
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I also love the Quantum Leap. The sculpture is bold, beautiful and elegant. I am puzzled about why so many comments are complaining about it being made from concrete – would they prefer stone, gold, aluminium, or bronze? Would a bronze bust of Darwin, worthy of the 19th not the 21st century, attract visitors. No, it wouldn’t. On the comment complaining about other ‘wastes of public money’ such as the theatre – is this not bringing people into the town? People who also go to the restaurants, pub & shops, so helping to keep local businesses going and keeping local people in jobs. Is this not helping the future economy of the town? Shrewsbury is an important county town and as such, surely should have a theatre, museum & art gallery and yes, good bold public art works.
The reference to the coloured sheep would be justified (they are pretty horrible) but they were not I believe paid for with tax payers money but by Tescos as a sweetener.
I think it is regrettable that Quantum Leap has had to have extra money spent on it, but the final work when the garden is finished will be something we should be proud of, not endlessly complain about. And no, I don’t think that people will come to laugh. But that is always the way – what is derided today is often revered and appreciated in the future. I also agree with points made about the local press – a good scandal-type story sells newspapers and in this day and age, newspapers are desperate to boost falling circulation.
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I’d like to know how it could possibly cost £450,000 – someone has pocketed a lot of our money! Any chance of a breakdown of the figures? The materials must have cost all of £500 – where did the rest go?
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I really can’t understand how anyone can think it was a good idea!!! A few slabs of concrete that cost us a fortune, that’s art is it?!
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The underpinning of the heavy structure right on a riverbank will have cost a good amount.
The site of the theatre mean’t that a huge percentage of the final cost, £32 million I believe, was sunk into the foundations.
If it had been sited on the Gay Meadow, height would not have been a problem and the ground level could have been used for maintenance areas and parking.
Apart from that, the designing and fabrication using concrete for this sculpture has been well executed as it is a specialised job that has to be carefully done.
Some people have kitchen work surfaces and polished concrete floors in their homes which are very expensive and look fabulous.
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What a asset to the Town. It’s that good they should start thinking about building another one on the bit of spare ground by the side of the English Bridge.
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