Tonight:
10°c
Day two and plinth plumbs the depths
Peter Dominiczak and Louise Jury07.07.09
It was a plea for better water sanitation, not a comment on modern art, when Oliver Parsons-Baker took to the fourth plinth dressed as a turd.
But Paul Scofield just wanted to jig. As a cow. At 7am. Mr Scofield, 35, an engineer, came from Paisley, Scotland, to take part in day two of Antony Gormley's living sculpture, One and Other.
Some early morning passers-by saw Karolina Peszko, a 24-year-old London art student, dropping dried petals on them, but they had already missed Patrick Purrves, 56, from Lincolnshire, playing morris dance tunes at 4am.
Earlier still, the plinthers had their first experience of how it would go down at pub kicking-out time.
Gormley watched participants in his 100-day Trafalgar Square project through the night as they braved rain, wind and abuse from passing drunks.
Andrew Deathe, 40, a gallery worker from Wales, held a Welsh flag and took pictures of the crowd during the wet and cold hour he spent on the plinth.
He said: “Some people were shouting abuse at me. People said I was wasting my time.” Gormley said: “It's going and it is evolving.”
Visit www.oneandother.co.uk/competitors/new to apply to stand on the plinth.
Reader views (10)
Pigeon looks good to me. Also well done Oliver Parsons-Baker for raising profile of WaterAid & over-fishing
- Paul Morris, Edinburgh
I love it! It's brilliant that we're all talking about what is and what isn't art. A great idea and all the haters are just jealous they aren't up there or that they lacked the imagination or bravery to apply. Great work to the man in the poo costume supporting WaterAid too. Lack of toilets kills 4,000 kids a day so he made an important point.
- Joe, london uk
I can assure you Mrs McLeod, I do have an imagination, although I think you may be confusing imagination with talent and effort. I have been on many zombie walks, chap olympiads and carnival events each involving fairly elaborate costumes, most of the people at these events wear them and most are home made, unfortunately for your daughter, a pitiful effort such as leggings and a t-shirt would be laughed out of the arena. As for it being art, well you only have to look at the dross that Tracey Emin churns out to see what passes for art these days. I'm sure you found the pigeon reference very poignant though, bless.
- Bob, Cheam
Did Antony Gormley get paid for this?
For his next trick he sell london bridge to the yanks
- Ge, Kernow
And how much is this costing and who is paying?
No answers required 'millions' and 'us' all so a small number of voyeurs can watch the performing monkeys when Big brother is not on. What a wonderful advert for our country, the tourist must think we are bunch of cheap talentless morons with time to kill and no life. Under SAD in the dictionary it will say see fourth plinth freak show.
- Gary, Brentwood
Bob, it isn't complicated.
The idea is very simple, this is celebration of the real people living in the UK! Real living people with there own independent thoughts and ideas.
One thing to learn about art, just because you don't like it doesn't mean it isn't art or even good art!
The girl with the pigeon outfit, I think, has made a good statement about Trafalgar square and the fact you are no long allowed to feed pigeons there.
- Stuart, Dunstable, Uk
Well Bob from Cheam, you don't have any imagination.She looked great and although the picture isn't the best angle, she did have a Blue peter moment making her pigeons head.
Yes, I am her Mum, and very proud of the fact she had the gumption to apply and do this.
- Lou Mcleod, London
This pile of rubbish is surely indicative of dumpUK.
- Ted, London
This is boring already .. how many days are there left to go .. 99? Yawn. And how much time is Anthony Gormley going to spend there personally .. or has he milked the ridiculous amount of publicity and moved on?
- Jay, London, UK.
It would appear I'm one of those who "just don't get it", how is a woman dressed (and let's be honest, grey leggins and a grey t-shirt aren't exactly much of an effort are they?) as a pigeon, art?
- Bob, Cheam
