{"id":427037,"date":"2026-02-15T13:04:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-15T13:04:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/427037\/"},"modified":"2026-02-15T13:04:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-15T13:04:09","slug":"original-sin-sculpture-set-to-be-installed-in-york-yorkmix","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/427037\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Original Sin\u2019 sculpture set to be installed in York | YorkMix"},"content":{"rendered":"

A sculpture by a 20th century British artist could be installed in the grounds of a University of York college if plans are approved.<\/p>\n

An application lodged by the university would see Michael Kenny\u2019s work Original Sin installed in the campus grounds between Derwent College and Heslington Hall.<\/p>\n

The gifting of the work to the university has been arranged by Brian Falconbridge, a sculptor and a trustee of the late artist\u2019s estate.<\/p>\n

Plans stated the brutalist ethos of the piece by a highly-regarded British sculptor would reflect the modernist features of the Derwent College building.<\/p>\n

The university\u2019s application, lodged with York Council, stated the piece would be made up of three elements each made of Portland stone.<\/p>\n

One is a semi-circle with a small indent on flat side at the top and another is a triangle with two rounded edges at the base.<\/p>\n

The third is an upright rectange with a circular top.<\/p>\n

Plans stated the tallest element, the rectangle, would be around 1.2 metres high.<\/p>\n

See the sculpture<\/p>\n

You can see a picture of the sculpture here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The University of York say we cannot reproduce the image without the permission of Michael Kenny\u2019s estate.<\/p>\n

The work has previously been exhibited outside The Economist Buildings in London and it was also shown as part of a contemporary dance performance.<\/p>\n

Kenny\u2019s work is characterised by abstract, figurative and symbolic forms with features which are sensitive to their setting and material.<\/p>\n

Sculptures by the artist often deal with isolation in the human condition and feature abstract or depersonalised shapes, along with those of reclining female figures.<\/p>\n

One of his works, On Strange and Distant Islands, was a relief which spanned above the eartern portal of London\u2019s Limehouse Link tunnel.<\/p>\n

Other pieces were influenced by biblical themes.<\/p>\n

His last major series of drawings, The Stations of The Cross, featured a modern reimagining of Jesus Christ\u2019s Passion across 14 mixed-media pieces.<\/p>\n

The artist was born in 1941 and studied at the Liverpool College of Art and the Slade School of Fine Art.<\/p>\n

He was made a Royal Academician in 1986 and went on to take a number of public commissions and was head of Goldsmiths College\u2019s Department of Fine Arts.<\/p>\n

Kenny died in 1999 and is buried in London\u2019s Highgate Cemetery.<\/p>\n

Professor Falconbridge, who has arranged the gifting of the sculpture, was also formely the head of Goldsmith\u2019s Department of Fine Arts.<\/p>\n

\"\"Heslington Hall at the University of York. Photograph: PA Wire<\/p>\n

He was also formerly president of the Royal Society of Sculptors.<\/p>\n

The University of York\u2019s plans for displaying his sculpture stated it was a carefully considered intervention that would respond well to the buildings and landscape around it.<\/p>\n

Plans stated: \u201cOriginal Sin is a sculptural work by Michael Kenny, a highly-regarded British sculptor known for his contribution to twentieth-century public art and architectural sculpture.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe sculpture\u2019s brutalist qualities \u2013 clarity of form, material truth, and absence of ornament \u2013 respond directly to the architectural language of Block B of Derwent College while providing a considered counterpoint to the historic formality of Heslington Hall.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A sculpture by a 20th century British artist could be installed in the grounds of a University of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":427038,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[6225,6485,6486,1120,96,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-427037","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/427037","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=427037"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/427037\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/427038"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=427037"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=427037"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=427037"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}