The Tree of Knowledge ....

.... or Abstract Thursday meets Derelict Thursday.

This might take some explanation - I'll keep it short.

This mosaic mural sits on the outside of a former school building - Cromwell Secondary for Girls (opened 1962),  then Irwell Valley High, after an amalgamation the Lowry Secondary, finally the Irwell Valley Campus of Salford University,  and after the opening of the new Albion School nearby - an empty site.

The building on which it sits - like all the other buildings on this site - was to be demolished. The others were. But after an intervention by the Tiles and Architectural Ceramics Society Salford City Council stopped demolition. It was listed by the former English Heritage. 

The real interest was this mural, designed by Manchester artist Alan Boyson. Local legend has it that the founding headmistress had a choice of spending money on a swimming pool, or a sculpture - and opted for the sculpture.

What the future holds for this mural I have no idea. The building on which it sits is at the centre of an empty site, looking very sad. The extra puts it into a bit of context.