The
Beatles Statue
Pier
Head,
Liverpool
On Friday 4 December 2015 in a short ceremony a new statue of the Beatles was unveiled at the Pier Head in Liverpool. I popped down a few days later to get some pictures.
Liverpool
already has several Beatles' themed statues and sculptures of varying quality.
I was impressed not only by the size of this new one, about 7 feet high and 1.2
tonnes, but by how the sculptor had captured some pretty accurate likenesses of
the individual Beatles. In this respect it stands head and shoulders above our
other group statue in the Cavern Walks.
The
idea for the new statue came from Chris Butler, the managing director of Castle
Fine Art Foundry Ltd which has a studio in the city.
He was
inspired walking through the new Liverpool ONE shopping centre (few can claim
that) telling the press that "I had this strange sort of feeling, the
first time I walked through Liverpool ONE when it opened back in 2008. It was
so big it felt almost like it had been dropped into the centre of the city. For
years we’d seen the cranes and we’d seen the models but, all of a sudden, bang,
Liverpool ONE was there. At first I felt like I could be anywhere. Then I
walked up those steps by HMV and there was this huge photograph of The Beatles
walking down the streets. That picture said “You’re in Liverpool”. I thought
that would be a fantastic concept for a Beatles statue”
 |
The
picture (above) was used on the Beatles "On Air - Live At The BBC Volume
2" album and was taken outside the President Hotel in Guildford Street,
near Russell Square in London on 2 July 1963. Liking the pose but wanting to
make the statues more "Liverpool",
Butler decided to sculpt the Beatles in the attire they wore when they
were photographed at the Pier Head on 19 February 1963 by Michael Ward (see
below)
Blame
my OCD, but I couldn't help notice that the statue places the group in a
different order to the HMV photo, and Ringo seems to have been pushed to the
back. There's a reason for this and another indication of the attention to
detail that went into the project: “If you look at the order (The Beatles) are
standing in, in the picture outside HMV we’ve actually moved them around (for
the statue it goes Paul, George, Ringo John). This actually replicates the
order they would be in on stage. Paul and George would share a mic, John would
be on the other side and Ringo behind. They’re all walking and basically on the
same step but all slightly out of step. The only hands in the sculpture are
Paul’s left hand and John’s right hand”. (Which are the hands John and Paul
used to play their respective instruments - a subtle touch)
 |
Sculptor Andrew Edwards and Chris Jones from Castle Fine Arts foundry with statues and maquette. |
The sculpture
was funded by the Cavern Club and generously gifted to the city. Visitors to
the August 2015 Beatle Week were given a sneak preview of the work in progress
when the completed sculpture's of John and Paul, and representations of George
and Ringo were displayed at the Adelphi Hotel (and removed before I remembered
to take a photo).
Speaking
at the unveiling, the Cavern’s managing director Bill Heckle said: “It has been
an unbelievable experience to witness the transformation of this city since
Cavern City Tours was incorporated in 1983. It bears little or no resemblance
to the forward thinking vibrant and world-class city that now stands before us.
It has been undeniable that tourism has been an integral and driving factor in
the renaissance of Liverpool and its most famous four sons have played a
pivotal role in bringing people here. We’re proud that we have been able to
finance this project on behalf of fans from all over the world.”
The
unveiling on 4 December 2015 coincided with the 50th anniversary the following
day of the Beatles last concerts in their home city when they played the
Liverpool Empire on 5 December 1965 and who better to perform the unveiling
than somebody who was at that final concert, John Lennon's sister Julia Baird.
Julia
said: “It’s a great honour to unveil this statue. We’ve got statues and bronzes
of people all along this waterfront who have brought their skills, their labour
and their love to Liverpool and helped it grow. It’s very apt that the Beatles
are here. What have they done for Liverpool? What haven’t they done for
Liverpool?!
I know John would have loved it. And I bet Paul
comes to see it as soon as he comes back here. The statue stands in loving
memory of the best band in the world - the band that leapt from The Cavern
stage to worldwide recognition. The timing reflects the 50 years since The
Beatles' final public appearance in Liverpool on December 5, 1965. I was
present at that event and am proud to be at the unveiling.”
Julia
was accompanied by Liverpool deputy mayor Cllr Ann O’Byrne who said she was
"delighted" to see the new statue: "Talk to anyone in or outside
the city about our history and you can guarantee The Beatles will get a
mention, so it feels right that this sculpture of these iconic men stands
proudly on our iconic waterfront."
 |
Original Quarry Men Colin Hanton and Len Garry were also at the unveiling |
Justifiably
proud, sculptor Andy Edwards said “I feel glad for the people of Liverpool.
It’s they who demanded this statue – it’s not like we pushed. They pulled, and
we just channelled that. I can remember walking around the waterfront with the
original sketch models and everybody wanted to talk to us, (it seems) everybody
has a Beatles story. Our image of them seems to bring past, present and future
together, like a time machine. I think
the statue will quickly become a place of ritual. It will be a place to come
together, have a think, meditate and play.”
It was
already doing the business when I visited, groups of visitors patiently waiting
their turn to be photographed with them.
Friends
present at the unveiling told me to look out for some little touches on each of
the statues, a talisman specific to each member of the band.
In 1969
John and Yoko sent acorns to world leaders, requesting they plant them as a
symbol of peace. It was decided to cast two acorns on the palm of John's statue
as an everlasting reminder of their peace campaign. Quite unintentionally
another link was forged as Chris Butler explained: “We’d been looking for
acorns but couldn’t find any. Anyway I was in New York in Central Park and I
remembered about the acorns". Close to the Dakota Building where John
lived (and was shot outside in 1980) Butler happened upon some Oak trees.
Picking up a handful of acorns he brought them back to Liverpool where two were
added to the sculpture.
"So
the two acorns in John’s hand are from outside The Dakota building. They’re
different from English acorns.”
A
statue in John's birthplace acknowledging the city where he died.
In
recognition of George's spiritual beliefs the back of his statue has an Indian
mantra inscribed on his belt.
Ringo's
talisman is both a nod to the postal district of where he grew up in Dingle and
his 2008 album but it's not easy to spot. If you can crouch low enough behind
his figure you may just be able to make out "L8" on the sole of his
boot. I've no idea if the real Ringo has
size 8 feet but that would be a nice co-incidence.
The
sentiment behind Paul's motif is a nice one but some have criticised the
execution. Paul is supposedly carrying a camera and camera bag referencing
Linda's love of photography.
However the sculpture appears to holding a
cine-camera which I suspect was copied from photographs of the Beatles in Paris
in January 1964. A small gripe on what is otherwise a superb piece.
The
Port of Liverpool Building (above) provides a stunning backdrop to the statues,
as does the Royal Liver Building.
"This
is a statue that needs no title, no explanation,
no instruments, no gimmicks.
It's a monument to a moment and the moment started in Liverpool."
(Chris
Butler)
Expect to see hundreds of photographs of these on social media in the coming years!
Sources:
Photos
of the unveiling ceremony appear on the Liverpool Echo website:
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/beatles-statue-unveiled-liverpool-waterfront-10548540
http://www.itsliverpool.com/arts-and-culture/the-story-behind-the-sculpture/
This is the website for Castle Fine Art Foundary. You can see some incredible pieces such as their statue to commemorate the 1914 Christmas truce as well as icons such as Mohammed Ali, Amy Winehouse etc here:
http://www.bronzefoundry.co.uk/News/NEWS.html
Praise and Thanks to JC for the two photos from the unveiling ceremony.
