A huge £69,000 sculpture of an Olympic torch unveiled in a Hampshire housing estate has left residents baffled, as one pointed out it looks like a giant Cornetto.
The 10m (31ft) high piece of art installed by the council in the market town of Andover has been branded an irrelevant ‘monstrosity’.
One resident warned that ‘the cone will be filled with junk’ as if it is an ‘enormous basketball hoop’, while another was concerned that children will climb on it and potentially hurt themselves.
The silver metal torch is said to represent a ‘symbol of hope’ for residents and was paid for by a housing company as part of a ‘public art’ project.
However, locals have said that the Olympic theme has ‘no connection to anything’ and the ‘upside down ice cream cone’ is nothing but an ‘eyesore’.
An enormous 10m high Olympic torch sculpture (pictured) has been installed in Andover, Hampshire
The torch, situated in the Picket Twenty Sports Ground (pictured), cost £69,000, leaving residents questioning if its a good use of money
The sculpture (base pictured) is Olympic-themed because ‘the build up to the London 2012 Olympic Games was processed through the Picket Twenty Urban Park’ but locals say its irrelevant and ‘not associated with anything’
One mother insisted it is a ‘waste of money’, and that the money should have been used for fix the ‘awful’ roads.
The sculpture, by artist Tim Ward, is in the Urban Park of a recent development called Picket Twenty, built by Persimmon Homes.
It is one of three new artworks in the area, which cost £69,000 between them.
In their planning application, designers said: ‘The ‘Torch’ sculpture represents a symbol of hope that guides, like a signal fire of old on a hill, of flaming tower or pole, people to the Urban Park.
‘The idea for the Olympic torch was derived from ancient Greece, where a sacred fire was kept burning throughout the celebration of the ancient Olympics on the altar of the sanctuary of Hestia.
‘In Ancient Greek mythology, fire had divine connotations – it was thought to have been stolen from the gods by Prometheus.
‘Every four years, when Zeus was honoured at the Olympic Games, additional fires were lit at his temple and that of his wife, Hera.
‘The modern Olympic game is still ignited in front of the ruins of the temple of Hera.
‘During the build up to the London 2012 Olympic Games was processed through the Picket Twenty Urban Park. The torch design takes the form of sweeping ‘movement’ curves with kinetic elements.’
The ‘torch’ (pictured) has sparked outrage among residents, with one branding is a ‘monstrosity’ and another warning that ‘the cone will end up filled with junk’
The sculpture (pictured) is supposed to be a ‘symbol of hope’ for those in the area
Construction of Picket Twenty, formerly a hamlet, began in 2010 and the suburb consists of 1,200 homes.
Test Valley Borough Council (TVBC), based in Andover, took to Facebook to introduce the artwork located on the sports pitches of a ‘new neighbourhood’ within the town.
Writing on Facebook, the council said: ‘We’ve been introducing you to the new artwork at Picket 20.
‘They’ve all been funded from Section 106 developer contributions from Persimmon Homes for public art on the development.
‘The Torch is currently being finalised on the Urban Park. This impressive 9.5m tall landmark sculpture represents a symbol of hope to guide people to this well-used space.’
In total, three pieces of artwork were commissioned by Persimmon, as part of the project managed by the TVBC.
The other two artworks installed in the park include a series of large colourful hoops located alongside a play area and one called the Tree Column.
In total, three pieces of art were commissioned, including some large colourful hoops (pictured) located alongside a play area
The council ‘artist brief’ stated a total of £69,000 was commissioned to create the public art.
Trisha Williams, 39, has lived in Picket Twenty for seven years and said the money could have been spent improving the roads.
The administrator said: ‘I don’t know if you have seen the state of the roads in Andover – it’s awful.
‘They’re just awful, they flood, there’s bricks coming up all over the place, there’s paving slabs but that’s all coming out, and then they go and put what they have described as artwork and it’s just awful, it looks awful.
‘So apparently the residents were consulted about this… I never had anything come through. I have spoken to a few of my neighbours and friends – nobody heard anything.’
Discussing the funding, she continued: ‘It just seems ridiculous how they’re not more concerned about the roads, surely they could have used that money, at their discretion.’
Describing the statue, Ms Williams added: ‘It just looks like an upside down ice cream cone that’s a monstrosity in the middle of a field.
‘It doesn’t show anything to do with Picket Twenty, it’s not associated with anything, it’s just a random piece of metal.’
On Facebook, the mother wrote: ‘So Persimmons can fund and erect this ridiculous monstrosity but yet I’ve been on at them directly for months regarding the road conditions… flooding, bricks rising and sinking and paving edging stone coming out of place! What a joke!’
Other locals also took to the comment section to share their opinions on the ‘symbol of hope’ sculpture.
Phil Marsden wrote ‘Just one Cornetto!’ whilst Jay Lind said: ‘This offends me take it down’.
The large silver torch (pictured) has been compared to an ‘upside down ice cream cone’
A local councilllor responded that ‘public art is very subjective and will often by subject to criticism’
Another resident, Michael Ford, wrote: ‘Wonder how many times a kid will attempt to climb it potentially injuring themselves if fall. Maybe they could of funded the community in better ways than pointless objects art’.’
Paul Watson added: ‘The cone will be filled with junk as it becomes a challenge like an enormous basketball hoop and re-painted with lots of new graffiti art.
‘I give it 5 years before it has to be removed. It does look cool tho.’
Local councillor, Luigi Gregori, said this type of artwork is often subjected to criticism, but said he believes plaques explaining their purpose would improve the projects.
He said: ‘Public art is very subjective and will often be subject to criticism.
‘Most of this criticism comes from a lack of communication of what the art installations are about.
‘There is no doubt that communication in the round could be better.
‘I do think each art installation should have a plaque explaining what it is about, how it came about and what the intention of the artist was.
‘That is what we tend to have in art galleries and exhibitions.’
A spokesman for Persimmon Homes South Coast said: ‘We are delighted to see the latest artworks from Tim Ward installed in Urban Park, close to the Picket Twenty community. The torch acts as a beacon for the area, bringing the new community to this shared space.
‘This was funded through the Section 106 contribution to Public Art, which was part of our planning requirement for the development.
‘We hope these new art works will help create some pride and a sense of ownership in the area.’
A spokesperson from Test Valley Borough Council confirmed the commission for the three artworks was £69,000.
They said: ‘This funding was specifically for the creation of public art on the Picket Twenty development and the council did not contribute any funds towards this work.’