Our Introduction
Challenging and solving social complexes within a community.
We are a team of creatives from LJMU that have teamed up with the people at the Tate Aisle Gallery in Birkenhead Park to create an external exhibition to go alongside the gallery's Spring Exhibition 2023.
What is the Tate Aisle Sculpture Trail?
The Tate Aisle Sculpture Circle is a trail, set inside the lovely Birkenhead Park, giving the opportunity for visitors to explore the park at a much deeper level through the placement of sculptures. The sculpture trails showcase a series of still sculptures identifying the variety of wildlife that can be found around the park (starting from the Birkenhead Visitor Centre). With this exhibition going alongside another exhibition, we want to make sure we are using both the Centre and the park to their full effect and encourage the visitors to explore as much of the area as possible.
How did this exhibition come to life?
The project was first brought to light by engaging with Tate Aisle Gallery which discussed with us about wanting to have an additional exhibition to go alongside the Spring Exhibition that the gallery put on every year. One of the ideas that we suggested was to investigate the Wildlife biome of Birkenhead Park and see how the visitors react to all the life within it.
From this, we began to explore Birkenhead Park to see what goes on inside it, from creatures to plants to the people who venture there. Since the main gallery is positioned within the Birkenhead Visitor Centre for everyone to freely enter and view, the idea of having a natural link between the two exhibitions would be an interesting challenge. Since there are already a lot of big spectacles around the park, we wanted to focus on curating a set of sculptures that would fit gently between all the major landmarks.
The two types of sculptures will use materials of wood and metal, robust resources that will fit naturally into the landscapes of the park. Each will display an image of the wildlife that can be found within the park, either a visual image or a colourful painting. Due to the smaller size of the sculptures, they will be noticeable throughout the trail but will be obvious enough that it will take attention away from the park’s landmarks.
Why did we take on this project?
​The main aim of this project is to bring a new sense of community and exploration to Birkenhead Park. With the two exhibitions happening alongside one another, the visitors can start at one and then be led into the other, exploring everything at their own pace within the community. Additionally, the chance to work with an outside organisation and give back to the local community is something that we value greatly and giving the community the opportunity to explore something new in their local area with bring a strong sense of accomplishment to our team.
When is the exhibition on?
Our exhibition trail within Birkenhead Park will be available from April 29th, 2023, until May 14th, 2023. It will start near the Birkenhead Park Visitor Centre (where the Spring Exhibition 2023 will be on display) and visitors can find their own way around the trail by either looking for the sculptures or using the trail map (available at the Visitor Centre which is open from 9 am till 4:30 pm). The park is open to the public all day, every day, so visitors can take their time to explore the trail and discover what the park has to offer.
The trail will be up during the dates of the King’s coronation and the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest so we hope there will be lots of footfall/traction from these big events and allow as many visitors as possible to explore the trail. This could mean that there will be many people visiting the park during the weeks of the exhibition so it will be important to ensure the upkeep of the sculptures and their placements around the park.
Meet the Team
The TAG Sculpture Trail Team - all creative artists from LJMU.
