Appeal to Save Leaning Woman of the Great West Road

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Statute installed at opening of the dual carriageway is slowly crumbling

The Leaning Woman sculpture beside the A4 in Hammersmith. Picture: Heritage of London Trust

June 26, 2023

An appeal is being made to restore a crumbling sculpture that is positioned by the Great West Road in Hammersmith.
https://www.spacehive.com/help-us-save-the-karel-vogel-statue-w6

The Leaning Woman is near the subway near St Peter’s Church and St Peter’s Square and was put in place in 1958 with the aim of calming motorists on the newly built A4 dual carriageway.

The reclining figure is now in urgent need of repair.

It is of a half-nude classical Greek woman doing a sideways limbo movement, and it was commissioned by the old London County Council to fill an area of leftover land alongside the road which was the first multiple carriageway in the UK.

It was created by sculptor Karel Vogel who arrived in Britain from Prague in 1938 after fleeing the Nazis.

X-ray imaging of The Leaning Woman sculpture to help assess damage

The intention was also to compensate Hammersmith residents for the intrusion of the road. Initial reaction was mixed with one reviewer describing it as a ‘modern monstrosity’.

Vogel died two years after his Leaning Woman was installed on its brick plinth.

The twice life size figures is cast in concrete, which was a fairly avant garde material for artists to use in the fifties, around a metal frame. Exposure to the elements and pollution for the last 65 years has resulted in cracks appearing while rust from the metal is visible.

In 2017, it was put on the Heritage at Risk Register to acknowledge its importance and highlight the urgent need for repair.

In recent months, Heritage of London Trust's Proud Places programme has brought 60 local pupils to visit the statue. These visits have inspired the children to create their own works of art based on the statue.

The charity has now started a crowdfunding campaign to restore the statue and donated £11,000. A further £20,000 has been given by Hammersmith & Fulham Council form Community Infrastructure Levy funds but this still leaves the appeal £18,000 short of its target.

If you would like to donate click here.

“This is such a worthwhile restoration,” said Cllr Sharon Holder, H&F Cabinet Member for Public Realm. “But we still need help to preserve this Grade ll-listed artwork for future generations to enjoy.”

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