Callanish Created

Today was a better day, glib remarks consigned to history my concern of yesterday for the friend so dear allayed. It was a warm morning but it took some time for the sun to burn through the morning haar. I set off at lunchtime to try and capture the shot I intended for yesterday. I headed across the city to the campus, a place I have spent so many hours studying, reading, thinking and working.

This is Callanish mostly referred to as Steelhenge. You will have seen from some of my shots taken around the campus that it has several little oasis secreted away from the prying eyes of the city that envelopes the academic world. Callanish encompasses not only the sculpture but also the landscaping around and was established by Strathclyde University in 1971.

New academic buildings that were spiralling out of the ground, sitting cheek by jowl with the traditional and beautiful original campus buildings, thankfully some bright spark realised that there was a need to provide some open space amongst the morass of concrete and sculptor Gerald Laing was engaged to transform a piece of wast land into a contemplative area for staff and students alike to enjoy. His vision was of sixteen abstract steel girders set into the ground, allegedly an homage to the ancient Callanish Stones on the Isle of Lewis.

The site also marks the highest point on the campus fitting perhaps that the still beautiful, tranquil gardens have been supplemented over the years with trees planted in memory of significant alumni and academics. I have spent many many hours here hidden among the sculpture and using it to rest my weary body as I read more and more legal tomes trying to retain as much a possible. With he exam diet over and the students away for the summer this is a a very quiet place and somewhere I take solace in the city when I cannot get to our river.

Born in Newcastle Laing trained at Sandhurst before training as a sculptor at St. Martin's School of Art. He lived in New York until 1969 before moving to Kinkell Castle, Dingwall, in the far north of Scotland, he was presented with the 1971 Civic Trust Award for his fastidious work to renovate the castle. In 1971 he also received a number of commissions for public work in the north of Scotland including Bilith III in Aberdeen; Alness Pyramid at Alness Academy; Division in the Highland Sculpture Park; and in 1972, Tunnel and Pyramid at Glenshee Sculpture Park.

Many commissions followed and he retured to his beloved North of Scotland where he unveiled In Memory (2000) for Creag Bunuillidh, Helmsdale, to commemorate victims of the Highland Clearances. Callanish is the only work in Glasgow and if you are inclined to seek it out you will not be disappointed. I will return to this subject again as it can be seen so differently from many angles. I love the colours and textures of the rusting columns the gentle curves at odds with the material the portrays them.

I hope you enjoy the shot and my dalliance into full colour for a little change.