Public art has the ability to stop people in their tracks and to reach an audience who may avoid the more conventional gallery setting. As such its impact is huge.
It is also a field of art that is continually imaginative in terms of the materials used – from Jeff Koon’s ginormous ‘Puppy’ made out of flowers, to Rachel Whiteread’s negative space sculptures. The opportunities for creative express can seem endless.
One artist who has tapped into these key elements of public art is Alfie Bradley, a talented artist who has excelled in a range of artistic mediums. Bradley was so moved by the distressing stories of knife crime that he began an extremely ambitious project in collaboration with the British Ironwork Company.
Bradley designed a sculpture of that universal symbol of hope and protection - the Angel. However, on this sculpture the serene countenance of the traditional angel, as depicted throughout art history, would be replaced with a look of complete anguish. Additionally, and crucially, this angel would emerge not from bronze or a block of marble, but instead through a weapon of violence – knives.
Police forces from around the country sent over 100,000 blades that had been confiscated or surrendered to the British Ironwork Company. Alfie Bradley created a structure out of steel and then built up the shape and form of the angel by welding the knives (each of which he disinfected and blunted) into the form of the angel.
The juxtaposition of these weapons of violence and the shape of an angel is insightful and moving. It was a painstaking project to complete and a true testament to the vision of Alfie Bradley and the various organisations and individuals he collaborated with.
The Knife Angel has been travelling around the country since 2018. Knife crime affects all places from the urban to the rural, and blades have been a weapon of attack in the domestic sphere as well as in public spaces. Consequently this symbol against violence has a wide reaching resonance.
The sight of this exquisite angel glistening in the sunlight is an extremely moving sight. Each blade that shimmers so beautifully is a poignant reminder of the crime behind it. As an artwork it emphasises the potential of the darkest aspects of human nature to be transformed into light.
The Knife Angel is on display in the gardens at Rochester Cathedral till 29th September 2019.