This sculpture represents a millisecond of time on the morning of 29th January 1943: Spitfire P8394, Gibraltar, in its final tragic moments, distorted, and consumed by the marshy ground of the North Third, close to the City of Stirling.
A commemoration of the bravery and ultimate sacrifice of one particular aviator, and all those who fought for freedom in the skies. Developed from the flowing lines of the iconic Supermarine Spitfire.
From one side it represents the spiralling organic forces of the earth, reaching up with tendrils of energy to reclaim metal and flesh back to its origin in the ground.
Then the elliptical flowing lines of the Spitfire emerge. And mounted within these shapes, providing a real link to the 1940’s, two original pieces of the plane.
Finally, rising upward, out of the chaos, a spirit of hope, determination, and inspiration ascends skyward. Through adversity, rising up on wings as an eagle.
Energised by the ingenuity and sacrifice of those involved in the struggles of a past war, it tunes into a resonance still felt more than 80 years later, reminding us of those, in services of all kinds, who continue to face external threats to our values and livelihoods.
Sculpted in aluminium strips, fastened with stainless steel. Incorporating fragments from the wreckage extracted in 2000.
