"Politicians" A Comment on the Process of the Referendum is a 6 metre sculpture carved out of a dying horse chestnut on the edge of Pearson Park by Hull artist Julian Barnard and was created in 2016 for Hull City of Culture 2017.
According to the artist:
All the faces have eyes, nose and mouth. All the mouths are shouting. Who is it that shouts and doesn’t listen? [well, apart from all of us on occasion] – Politicians. The 3 crowns represent power. The left arm is holding an ice cream which is a metaphor for bribery – vote for me and everyone will get ice cream … The right arm is held into the body and the hand is concealed behind it. This is intended as a metaphor for threat – just what is it that is being held that I cannot see? The hidden hand can also be read as ‘in the back pocket’ indicating self-serving. The bearded face at the back is – ‘Laughing all the way to the bank’. I hasten to add that there is no implied comment on the ‘Referendum result’ but there is of the process, rhetoric and assertions made.
There are also local references. The outstretched arm with the ice-cream gestures towards [an] ice-cream parlor in the middle of the Park. The bearded face at the back is ‘smiley’ – Hull is a happy place. The 3 crowns are a reference to Hulls coat of arms.
The cache is a nano hidden close to the sculpture. Please bring your own pen for signing the log. As I have left Hull since hiding this cache, I am unable to change the log roll. If anyone else can do this, I'd be grateful.
W (a.k.a. DidianRay)
