ORNAMENTAL PASSIONS: Supreme Court, Parliament Square SW1

Monday, 24 August 2009

Supreme Court, Parliament Square SW1

The ground floor windows of the Supreme Court have keystone figures of great charm, by Henry Fehr. On the south face they represent the arts, specifically sculpture, painting, classical architecture and gothic architecture.

I particularly like the representation of sculpture, which appears to be a neat reversal of the Pygmalian myth - a female sculptress is admiring a male figure.

2 comments:

Exit, Pursued by a Bear said...: Are you sure that is a female sculptor?

Given that the figure they are admiring bears more than a passing resemblance to the Big J.C. (beard, flowing robes, no feet, hovering above what looks like a little cloud) I'd say that was "Scripture" rather than "Sculpture".; 25 August 2009 at 10:18
Chris Partridge said...: I'm pretty sure she's female, but I do have doubts about the sculptor bit. No chisel or mallet. She is next to a painter and these figures do tend to come in sets. She looks like a saint, but I can't find out which saint carries a figure of Christ. Who is the patron saint of Middlesex?; 25 August 2009 at 12:07