Public art or potential crash site?
That is the question elicited by Leap Street, a striking proposal put forward by Port Elizabeth artist Duncan Stewart’s awe-inspiring artwork for the Baakens Street traffic circle – and the unfinished freeway right above it.
The design stemmed from a call for proposals by the Mandela Bay Development Agency (MBDA), on behalf the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality, in 2012.
However, almost seven years later, it has emerged that the project will not see the light of day.
Stewart’s design concept was to have a pair of massive concrete hands in the circle below, “catching” a group of children as they back-flipped, jumped and leaped for joy off the unfinished freeway.
Stewart said on social media in February that the artwork had, unfortunately, not made the cut. “I’m guessing it may have caused the odd accident,” he joked.
MBDA spokesperson Luvuyo Bangazi said the project had been scrapped following, among other issues, environmental impact studies that had found the artwork could cause accidents.
Of his artwork, Stewart said there had to be synergy between the circle and the freeway.
“I immediately linked the circle to the ending of the freeway – for me they are one and the same thing because the original call was something for the circle and, I think the way it was worded, it would [also] be good to take the [unfinished] freeway into account,” he said.
Stewart said with his design he wanted to leave observers appreciating the piece as a true work of art rather than that it was politically correct.
“Obviously, [something] that’s not offensive to any specific groups,” he said.
“I’m mindful of all of that and I’m mindful of our history, but at the same time I wanted to create something that when people see it they feel uplifted.
“So the concept of the massive hands, so solid, so grounded, so strong, being the catcher of the futures of these little kids.
“And the kids having the freedom of being able to jump off into their futures knowing that they are secure because the municipalities and our government are providing a very solid safety net for them.
“So that was the idea.”
Bangazi said the MBDA was not at liberty to disclose the design that would have been chosen or the number of entrants.
“Although I have the designs from the successful bidder, unfortunately I am unable to publish them as we do not have sole rights to them as yet,” he said last week.
Bangazi confirmed the project had been scrapped.
“The project was one of many aimed at rejuvenating the inner city using art creativity to add to the attraction of the Bay. What complicated matters was the authorisations that had to be provided by a variety of institutions.
“The freeways being part of the road network required municipal approval and environmental impact assessments to determine the impact on traffic into the city,” he said.
“The information we had at the time regarding that specific location [Baakens Street circle] indicated that because of the high volume of public transport throughout the day, the art installation could trigger undesired consequences.”
Though unlucky in the Baakens Street circle project, Stewart has collaborated with the MBDA in the past.
“My experience with the MBDA has been brilliant because I was awarded another public art piece – The River Memory [at Donkin Reserve].
“It was one of the first public art works that they commissioned at the beginning when they were looking at reclaiming the city centre,” he said.