Art Work For Rock Walk

No much is happening down at Rock Walk at the moment. The work to make sure nothing kills any visitors and locals has finished though the Blue Wall will stay in place for the time being. This is so work can be carried out to replant the area. This is expected to finish by March next year. Once the Blue Wall comes down the road will be reopened. It is expected that the seaward side of the duel carriageway will be set aside for parking and through traffic will use the cliff side of the road. One slight problem with this is there will be no room for the two bus stops, one in each direction, that used to serve this stretch of road. Mind you it has been so long since these bus stops were used that it is unlikely anyone will notice.

Below is an item from the Herald Express dated 7 July 2008

THE search is on to find artists to create two new pieces of art for Rock Walk.

The £24,000 projects will be part of the restoration of the Royal Terrace Gardens with the first anticipated to be finished by Christmas.

Stabilisation works on the cliff face have already finished on budget and restoration work has now started.

Torbay Council has asked art and design consultants Ginkgo to help find an artist to produce work for a grotto found within the lower wall of the gardens.

The grotto is currently empty and the artist will be required to create a 'moment of delight and surprise' for visitors.

The design should compliment the wider regeneration project which celebrates the Victorian love of pleasure, gardens and amusements.

An artist or designer is also being sought to create material on or near a planned viewing platform.

It is hoped the piece would promote a greater understanding of the Torbay's Geopark status and the wider Bay, focusing on the view looking out and away from the gardens.

The interpretation should link Rock Walk to other sites and key locations within Torbay and may highlight the view and its landmarks.

It also needs to be low maintenance, robust and resilient to all kinds of attention from visitors.

Deputy mayor Chris Lewis said: "We want to protect Rock Walk for future generations and I can't wait for these plans to come to fruition, when we create a place where residents and visitors can once again visit and enjoy.

"We are committed to looking at creative ways in which we can revitalise our town centres and support local businesses as well as the creative and cultural community. These commissioned pieces of work will reinforce the local identity, enhance the area and be a landmark that attracts new visitors to Rock Walk and the Royal Terrace Gardens."

Cllr Dave Butt added: "We have a wealth of artistic talent in Torbay and across Devon so I really hope that local artists and designers will register their interest for these projects. The grotto is a really unusual location for a piece of artwork and should inspire many creative ideas.

"I am really looking forward to seeing all the finished artwork in Rock Walk."

The grotto art would be completed by December with the viewing platform material being finished by March next year.

To finish it on time submissions need to be in by July 16 with interviews taking place the following week.

For more information visit www.ginkgoprojects.co.uk