Wednesday 21 September 2011

Forgotten Totem

At the old Commonwealth Institute I spotted this intriguing culpture, abandoned, as you see, and being gradually embraced by ivy.  It's clearly one of the exhibitits from the Institute which didn't make it to the British Empire Exhibition (and thence, illegally into the grasp of private collectors I suppose. See my post below).

It is by the acclaimed Zimbabwean sculptor John Takawira and it is called "Totem Protection."   I'm imagining it standing there through a decade of rain and wind and neglect, seen only by security guards and their dogs, and bravely keeping an eye on the place, all alone.  

Actually, I am hoping that Dave King may spot this post and write a poem about it, if he is ever stuck for inspiration. ( I firmly believe Dave is one of those people, like Tennyson, who actually thinks in poetry -  so click on his name and take a look at his blog, if you like poems. )

I have written to the Design Museum asking if they're going to incorporate Totem Protection  into the bright new renovation scheme. It would be a pity to see it carted away on a builder's truck for an unknown destination, like so much else that was in this museum. 

And there's acres of fantastic hardwood flooring inside, too. Just flagging it up, y'know.... wouldn't like that to disappear either...  

18 comments:

  1. Hello Jenny:
    This, and we fear many other most worthy pieces, are to be found languishing in the most unexpected of places and all are, surely, deserving of new, more public homes.

    Here such sculptures, usually in the form of statues of eminent people, come and go with great regularity according to the political mood of the moment.

    ReplyDelete
  2. He's wonderful and looks quite at home where he is so it will be a great shame if he disappears altogether. I love it when you find something like this don't you?

    ReplyDelete
  3. WOW! Let us know if this story comes full circle.

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a wonderful totem! I love the story and I hope he gets well taken care of.

    ReplyDelete
  5. it looks so wonderful...i wonder why it didnt make i to the exhibition... and yes dave king is awesome... i am a great admirer of him :) he can write a poem about anything under the sun...or above it as well :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'm so glad you've written to the powers that be. Such a shame when this type of thing happens.

    ReplyDelete
  7. It's so intriguing and eerily seems so sage, even when seen in a photo. I do hope the ending to this tale is a happy one. : }
    xoxo
    -Sonia

    ReplyDelete
  8. I hope you keep an eye on him and let us know what happens. :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. What a nice totem! Is the Commonwealth Institute on High Street Kensington? If it is the building I think it is, I had never seen the totem. Thanks for spotting it!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Have you tried writing to the papers? Any chance the er, public would share your outrage?

    ReplyDelete
  11. You finding it and sharing with us made it more appreciated by others, even from afar. :)

    ReplyDelete
  12. I agree that it is a very attractive statue and it looks a bit sad among the ivy and dead leaves. Well done for spotting it, it deserves to be re-discovered and looked after.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I'm hoping the totem finds a good home. Maybe you've helped get it a little attention.

    Darla

    ReplyDelete
  14. Reminds me of folks I have worked with...

    ReplyDelete
  15. It's certainly worth a proper place in a museum. A very intriguing figure. Why the two faces for instance? Are they a bit like the two faces that symbolise the theatre?

    ReplyDelete
  16. Well, thank for the thought and for the glowing tribute -fancy being mentioned in the same breath as Tennyson! I may well use your most intriguing image, possibly in a poem I am working on just now. (Incidentally, does it have 3 faces, or 4?)

    ReplyDelete
  17. Where artifacts have come from (or rather, where they've been stolen from) is an important issue for us archaeologists as well. Last year while on a tour around a museum, which was guided by our professor who also works at the museum, we got to take a look into the archives - you wouldn't believe how many things are kept in that giant vault - the actual exhibition shows only a small percentage of what the museum owns. The English, French and Germans have stolen so much during the colonial era

    ReplyDelete

Blog Archive