AN EYE-opening sculpture in the form of a giant table and chair is set for Hampstead Heath this summer, two years after the audacious proposal was first suggested.
The 30-foot installation (pictured) by maverick Italian artist Giancarlo Neri is due to be shipped from Italy this month. It is known simply as The Writer and is supposed to encourage viewers to be creative. Delays hit the project when bosses at Simon Gillespie Studio in Mayfair were forced to delay the transport of the giant artwork because of poor weather.
Organisers now want Town Hall planning officials to extend approval for the project until October.
A decision is due by the end of the month but it is unlikely the council will pull the plug on the plans after twice offering its approval. The sculpture, which has stood in the Villa Ada, Rome, is planned for Parliament Hill Fields.
It will not be fenced off and Heath users will be able to get up close to the giant installation. A studio spokeswoman said: “It is an outside sculpture which will encourage people to take an interest in art. You look at somewhere like the Tate Modern and it has been so popular. We would love to recreate that.”
Mr Neri, a former professional footballer with the New York Apollos, is due to travel to England in the next couple of months to oversee the project. He was at the Town Hall two years ago when the project was first given the green light by planning chiefs, although The Writer was never brought to the Heath.
Funding problems hit the project two summers ago, while last year contractors were unable to meet safety regulations. Mr Neri’s project team will be obliged to repair any damage that the sculpture leaves on the Heath. Heath guardian the Corporation of London is behind the scheme to finally land The Writer. Heath superintendent Simon Lee has personally signed planning application forms.
A Corporation spokesman said: “The Corporation’s consultative committee saw Giancarlo two years ago and approved it in principle. The management committee then also approved it. Giancarlo now has the funding and has the structure, which has been up in Rome.
“It isn’t something that would be suitable in winter but is ready for summer.”