Bidding for the European Capital of Culture title encourages mayors to dream big and lust after buildings they don’t need and can’t afford, says Oliver Wainwright.
A cloud of planks swirls above the streets in the Belgian city of Mons, thrusting neon-painted splinters out in all directions. Like the jazzy nest of some mutant raver-crows, it is a curious arrival to the sleepy medieval lanes, a 90m-long torrent of orange sticks between the classical law courts and the baroque bell tower. It can only mean one thing: the European capital of culture 2015 has arrived.
That was the scene last week. Now all that remains of the €400,000 centrepiece of the city’s cultural jamboree is a few broken stumps jutting out of the pavement. The entire sculpture, designed by Belgian artist Arne Quinze and intended to stand here for the next five years, has been dismantled after just five weeks, following concerns over its stability after chunks of wood fell to the ground... Keep reading on The Guardian
A cloud of planks swirls above the streets in the Belgian city of Mons, thrusting neon-painted splinters out in all directions. Like the jazzy nest of some mutant raver-crows, it is a curious arrival to the sleepy medieval lanes, a 90m-long torrent of orange sticks between the classical law courts and the baroque bell tower. It can only mean one thing: the European capital of culture 2015 has arrived.
That was the scene last week. Now all that remains of the €400,000 centrepiece of the city’s cultural jamboree is a few broken stumps jutting out of the pavement. The entire sculpture, designed by Belgian artist Arne Quinze and intended to stand here for the next five years, has been dismantled after just five weeks, following concerns over its stability after chunks of wood fell to the ground... Keep reading on The Guardian