Time to Celebrate

British Waterways together with Bath & North East Somerset Council, the Kennet & Avon Canal Trust and the Widcombe Association, are delighted to announce the appointment of the Bath artist, Alan Dun, to create a commemorative artwork to celebrate the bicentenary of the Kennet & Avon Canal this year.

Artists were invited to submit their proposals and ideas for a suitable artwork to reflect the unique canalside environment of the Bath Flight of Locks and provide a lasting legacy to celebrate the 200 year anniversary of the Kennet & Avon Canal.

Alan Dun with stone mason Nigel Bryant from City of Bath College took part in the Widcombe Rising community event on Sunday 13 June to share the design idea for the commemorative artwork, which will be a working sundial in cast iron mounted on a plinth of Bath stone with references to the history of the canal and its trades.

The choice of materials and design will be sensitive to the surrounding environment, using materials which are part of Bath’s architectural industrial and cultural heritage. City of Bath College will fabricate the Bath stone plinth and letter cutting, in turn promoting local skills and talent. It is proposed that the sundial, which is yet to receive planning permission, would be located adjacent to the Kennet & Avon Canal towpath near the Horseshoe Walk end of the Widcombe Flight in Bath.

Artist Alan Dun said: “It’s a great pleasure to be able to work on the project and help celebrate this sometimes overlooked corner of Bath. The Kennet & Avon Canal is a green route through the city and a showcase of industrial heritage. I hope that the piece I am creating, which incorporates the sundial, will be a welcome addition to the towpath and help people appreciate the canal now and in the future.”

Photos Courtesy of British Waterways