Emily Williamson statue for Didsbury proposal

I was approached in the autumn of 2020 by Andrew Simcock who previously led a campaign to erect a statue of Emmeline Pankhurst in Manchester. Andrew had found me as the sculptor for the Virginia Woolf statue campaign in the context of the media coverage of Maggi Hambling's tribute to Mary Wollestonecraft.

Whilst Andrew was also offering Hazel Reeves (who created that wonderful Pankhurst statue) the opportunity to make a proposal for an Emily Williamson statue, he and others on the committee wanted to ensure a wide variety of interpretations were obtained from which to select first a long-list of 12 sculptors and later on a short-list of 4 sculptors.

I am honoured to be on the long-list. I have it at heart to help redress the imbalance between statuary of men versus women worldwide as it is truly skewed. Emily Williamson was an amazing woman who deserves a lasting tribute.

Fast forward to February 2021... Survey Monkey contributors to the short-list poll will either choose my proposal or not.

When the 4 short-listed sculptors have been selected by any of you taking part on the Survey Monkey platform, then all 4 will produce a final maquette in bronze which can be presented to the public. Later, after exhibiting those and obtaining votes from the public again, the committee will settle on the sculptor who wins the most votes and most faithfully / dynamically represented Emily Williamson.

My proposal is currently a very rough maquette in oil clay, created associatively with another sculptor friend who prefers to remain anonymous. (As I was having temporary hand problems, I did the research & designed the composition, she did the actual clay work with my regular input).

This maquette will be further refined by me (face, dress, folds, hands,etc.) if I am short-listed in the final group of four.

I am also happy to omit the bird in the final design if it is felt to be an unnecessary addition (and expense), but I thought her stance and rapport with the bird showed her great affinity for birds.

I welcome input and suggestions from participants to the survey.

The committee has expressed their desire to have me cast the statue in England if I am selected, and I will therefore be using the same foundry which cast my statue of Ken Jones.