Lancashire art in the landscape issue 1

Sculpture parks - Panopticans - Maps
Lancashire
Art in the
Landscape
Burnley - Pendle - Clitheroe - Irwell valley. Bonus, Preston’s parks.
Geoff Whittaker
East Lancs Edition No 1

Art in the landscape
East Lancashire has many places to explore that feature public
art works. Some works are part of long distance trails while
other large single works known as panopticans have become
well known landmarks
This guide includes a selected gazetteer of places to visit. The
locations chosen feature art by world renowned artists and
architects.
East Lancashire also has a fascinating and varied range of
attractions including forrest walks, heritage railways and
historic houses that feature outdoor art.
Pendle near Barley G Whittaker
2

The area covered in the guide includes, Clitheroe, Burnley,
Rawtenstall and Pendle.
If you are an art aficionado or just want something different this guide
is for you.
Four sculpture trails and one panoptican are featured along with local
attractions that are nearby to the sculptures.
Outdoor art does not just exist without a context . Each work is
related to its location, for example the Pendle trail sculptures have
a theme of Witches. The Rawtenstall works are themed on the East
Lancs Railway.
The locations are to either side of the M65 and easily reached
by car. Public transport is available to most of the sites.
3

Locations - north to south
Brungerley park - Clitheroe
Riverside walks
Clitheroe castle
Twenty scuptures to explore
Pendle sculpture trail - Barley
Witch themed trail
Forrest Walks
Barley Mow Inn
Towneley Hall - Burnley
Textiles and decorative art
Sculpture trail
Cafe
Singing ringing tree - Burnley
Local walks
Spectacular viewpoint
Wind powered sculpture
Gates 1 & 2 - Rawtenstall
East Lancs Railway
Whittaker park museum
Lamberts Mill shop

Mapping copyright openStreetMap

Brungerley park
Just outside Clitheroe lies Brungerley park, here visitors can explore
paths along the river Riblble and see glorius views accross the Ribble
valley.
A main feature of the park are the twenty scuptures ranging from
Sika Deer to a stone otter scupture. The sculpture trail was begun
in 1993 and is now a well known and popular feature of the area.
View from Brungerley park - G Whittaker

Sculpture trails
How to get there
From the centre of Clitheroe follow the A671 Queensway to the Roundabout,
carry on through onto Waddington road. At a sharp left hand
bend turn right under the railway bridge, carry on allong Waddington
road until you reach Brungerley bridge.There is a layby just beyond on
the right suitable for parking.

Brungerley bridge - G Whittaker
The sculptures
A life size Sika deer scupture by
Clare Bigger is an attractive feature
of the park. Stainless steel is used.
A sense of movement is created by
having a realistic running pose.
Sika deer are now native to the
area and can be seen at dawn or
dusk.
A carved limestone otter by Fiona Bowley
(2007) graces a leafy location near one of the
footpaths in the park. Otters were once common
on this stretch of the river.
The area near the bridge once boasted rowing
boats and a steam launch.
The park is well worth a visit in any season.A
PDF leaflet is available to download.

Nearby
The town of clitheroe is know for it’s Norman castle. The castle is one of the
oldest stone structures in Lancashire, now only the keep remains.
Roger de Poitou was granted land in the area by William the Conqueror and
chose this prominent limestone outcrop. The castle has been used as a Court a
prison and more recently as a museum.
Clitheroe is an old established market town with a market being held here since
Norman times. Originally the market ran down Castlegate from the castle to
the Church. At the end of the nineteenth century the market moved to its present
location off station road.
Clitheroe station was originally opened in 1850, it lost its passenger service
in 1962. The station only re-opened in 1994. Travellers can now depart from
Blackburn for a trip along the scenic line that crosses Whalley viaduct.This
wonder of the Victorian age is built of seven million bricks and boasts 49 arches.
The station now features the platform art gallery and award winning bus
interchange.
Information
Trail leaflet - http://www.visitribblevalley.co.uk/tourism/downloads/file/43/the_
ribble_valley_sculpture_trail_leaflet
Sculpture trail Leaflet
Platform Gallery - https://www.ribblevalley.gov.uk/platformgallery

Pendle sculpture trail
Near the village of Barley on the flanks
of Pendle hill is a sculpture park dedicated
to the Lancashire Witches.
It was set up in 2012 for the four hundredth
aniversary of the Witch trials
that were held in Lancaster.
Four artists were commisioned to create
works for the project.
Ceramic plaques were created by
Sarah mcdade. Each plaque represents
one of the people acused of witchcraft
in 1612.

Sculpture trails

The Sculptures
Pendle from Barly - G Whittaker

Phillipe Handford cretaed a number
of works using wood and metal
The Quaker tree represents the
branching out of the Quaker
movement .The movement
was founded in Pendle when
George Fox had a religious vision
on top of Pendle hill in 1652.
Nearby
The village of Barley has a long
history dating back to the bronze
age. There was an Iron age fort
at Rosyton and the Romans left
evidence of occupation to the West.
The Pendle Inn is a fine building
and well woth a visit., there is also a
tea room.
Barley is an excellent base for walks
up Pendle hill. The car park has an
information centre and picnic site.
There are two main routes, that
climb Pendle, one passess Ogden
clough reservoir and curves back
around to the summit.There is a
more direct, and steeper!, route
going North out of the village.
Information
Pendle witches trail site - http://www.walkingwiththetaxidriver.co.uk/thewalks/lancashire/lancashire-pendle-witches-trail-from-barley/
Barley village site - http://www.barley-village.co.uk/

The singing ringing tree
High above the town of Burnley
sits the singing ringing tree.
Made from tubes of galvanised
steel it takes the form of a tree
shaped by the wind.
In June 2007, Singing Ringing
Tree was named winner of a
National Award for architectural
excellence by the Royal Institute
of British Architects (RIBA).
There are spectacular views
across Burnley with Pendle Hill,
home of the Lanacshire Witches
visible on the left.
On a clear day The Yorkshire
Dales three peaks can be seen,
Ingleborough, Pen-y-ghent and
Great Whernside.
The artist Tonkin Liu is actually
two people. Mike Tonkin
creates inovative Landscape
art. he currently teaches
at the University of Bath

Panopticans
Fact file
Artist
Tonkin Liu
Date
2007
Location
Burnley Crown Point
Commisioned by
Mid Pennine Arts

Ana Liu is an architect with over fifteen years of
experience. She has worked for practices in China,
Japan, the USA and the UK.
Nearby
At its peak Burnley was one of the
North’s most prominent mill towns. It
has held a market for over 700 years and
is still a regional centre of excellence for
manufacturing. It has strong economic links
with Manchester, now aided by a direct rail
service recently re-introduced over 50 years
after original closure.
The canals, rivers and reservoirs aroung
Burnley are great places to walk. wildlife can
be seen including weasels, stoats and deer.
The weavers triangle visitors centre features
a recreated Victorian schoolroom and a
history of the canals and mills in the area.
Surrounded by beautiful countryside
Burnley is a great place to visit.

Towneley sculpture trail
Near Towneley Hall at Thannet Lee
woods a sculpture trail features a
range of carved creatures. East of
the Hall is a tawny owl carved by
Richard Colbran in the place of a
lost
limb of a Cedar of Lebanon tree.
(2001).
The park around Townelly Hall
extends for 180 hectares (440 acres)
and is only one mile from the town
centre.The Townelly family were a
wealthy Catholic family and became
owners of the Whalley Abbey
vestments. The abbey was disolved
by Henry VIII in the sixteenth
century.
Townelly hall is now the art gallery
and museum for Burnley.Displays
include natural history, Egyptology
and local history.The displayed art
focusses on romantic Victorian and
Pre-Raphaelite works.There is also a
museum shop and cafe.
Rotating exhibitions, activities and
events make the park a great day out
for all the family.
Information
Townelly Hall web site - http://www.burnley.gov.uk/residents/towneley-hall

Sculpture trails

Towneley history
Towneley Hall has undergone many
reconstructions since the original
open hall house was built on the site,
in 1380. The first Townelly associated
with the area was Richard (I) De
Townelly who was Sheriff of the
county of Lancaster. By 1450 a south
wing had been built. A chapel was
added in 1530.
A North wing was added in 1628.
The present layout of the house was
Established in the 18th Century.

Irwell trail
Brooksbottom viaduct - G Whittaker

Sculpture trails
The Irwell sculpture trail is a long distance
path that begin s in Bacup and goes
through Rawtenstall. This location has
railway related sculptures and a link to the
East lancs Railway.
A trip on the railway is recommended.

The sculptures
Designed by Chrysalis Arts
Gateways 1 & 2 are made from
shaped rails and cut steel sheets.
The design represents locomotive
wheels. there is also a mosaic
base.
The Irwell sculpture trail is
aranged in to clusters stretching
from Bacup to the Ordsall area of
Manchetser.
Rawtenstall is also the location
of a rebuilt station on the East
Lancashire Railway. The line runs
on an “L” shaped route through
Ramsbottom via Bury and on
to Heywood. The twelve mile
route re-opened in stages from
1987. A new statioon opened in
2016 at Burrs country park, this
is one of the sculpture cluster
locations. The transport museum
at Bury features a range of vintage
vehicles and displays.

Location
Nearby
Lumb viaduct has recently been restored
as part of a cycle way and can be seen
from the Irwell sculpture trail.. The cycle
way runs parallel to the heritage East
Lancashire line on the closed route to
Accrington. The cycle way is being gradually
expanded towards Helmshore on
the track bed of the old line.

Visitor information centres
Clitheroe
Platform Gallery,
Email: platform.gallery@ribblevalley.gov.uk
Telephone: 01200 425566
Platform Gallery and Visitor Information Centre, Station Road,
Clitheroe, BB7 2JT
Pendle
Pendle’s Gateway Visitor Centre
Discover Pendle Centre, Boundary Mill, Colne, BB8 9NW
Telephone 01282 856186 or email DiscoverPendle@pendle.gov.uk
Burnley
Burnley Tourist Information Centre
Burnley Bus Station, Croft Street,Burnley, Lancashire, BB11 2EF
Telephone No. 01282 455485
Email - tic@burnley.gov.uk
Rawtenstall
Rawtenstall Library,Queen, Rawtenstall, Lancashire , BB4 6QU
Telephone : 01706 252411
Email : tourism@rossendalebc.gov.uk
Ramsbottom and Bury
The Fusilier Museum opposite Bury Art Gallery & Museum.
The centre is open every day between 10am and 5pm Monday - Friday
and 10am- 4pm Saturday
Telephone 0161 253 5111
email touristinformation@bury.gov.uk
Web - http://www.visitbury.com/

Public art in Preston

“Public art can make a major
contribution to giving a place character
and identity, bringing people into and
through places” (Preston Council)
Avenham park has an interesting array
of art works

The recent Heritage lottery funded
restoration of Avenham and
Miller parks has highlighted the
presence of a number of art works
that can be viewed when visiting.
Some are better known than
others. The Dolphin fountain has
been repaired back to its original
condition while the carved stone
frog is perhaps less well known.
The Sebastopol canon are another
recent example of a restored
historical landmark.
The original cannons were
removed in the 1960’s leaving
a bare mounting plinth with a
carved “Sebastopol” inscription.
The replacements were not
without controversy, as can be
seen in the image, someone has
written “peace” on the barrel of
the cannon. Such a war like object
in a peaceful location upsets some
sensibilities. Often public art can
arouse strong emotions and some
installations have been destroyed
in other cities.
There are two Grade II listed
Victorian parks in Preston both
are adjacent to each other on the
banks of the Ribble. Designed by
Edward Milner, they were Built in
the 1860’s. The parks are separated
by the embankment of the East
Lancashire railway.
This railway ran into a dedicated
platform at Preston’s main station.
The viaduct over the river has recently
had a new surface applied and it is
intended that the path will be linked
to the Fishergate car park.