Willow Man
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Willow Man is a large outdoor sculpture by Serena de la Hey, situated in a field by the M5 motorway near Bridgwater in Somerset county, southwest England. It stands 12 m high, made of willow withies on a steel frame.
Willow Man was commissioned by South West Arts, for the Year of the Artist 2000. It marks the millennium and celebrates the role of willow in the ecology and craft tradition of the Somerset Levels.
The first sculpture was burnt down in an arson attack in May 2001, and was replaced by Willow Man II by the same artist in October 2001. As a precaution against further attacks, a moat was excavated around the sculpture.
A notable landmark, the sculpture is also known as "Withy Man", and as "Angel of the South" in reference to Anthony Gormley's Angel of the North.
On September 4, 2006, it was decided that the Willow man was going to get a '£20,000 hair cut'. Maintenance took place in that month. The original artist, Serena de la Hey said at the time she thought that many local birds have been using the material for their nests. When the artist saw her sculpture she was 'shocked to see the wear and tear'.
