The Navigators
A notoriously difficult object to photograph, because of its size and the relatively small space within which it is exhibited, The Navigators is a rivet-covered bronze sculpture with the face of a man and the body of an industrial-age ship, which is actually an enormous kinetic machine.
The 60-foot steampunk sculpture by artist David Kemp was installed in 1987 during the renovation of Hay's Galleria, which saw the conversion of the old wharf into a shopping centre. When activated, its oars move through the water at its sides.
Kemp is a British artist best known for his large assemblage sculptures. He lives on the Atlantic coast of West Cornwall where he scavenges for interesting bits to make his art from.
About his art he says: "I make things out of things, big things, little things, old things and new things. I like to recycle things, and find new uses for things that have been thrown away. Some things say something about their surroundings, and other things become something else."
The Navigators was one of Kemp's first major public installations. Since then, he has created a number of large works including the "Old Transformers," a pair of huge outdoor sculptures near Consett, County Durham.
Hay's Galleria is named after its original owner, the merchant Alexander Hay, who acquired the property - then a brewhouse - in 1651. In around 1840 John Humphrey Jr acquired a lease on the property and he asked William Cubitt (father-in-law to two of Humphrey's sons) to convert it into a 'wharf', in fact an enclosed dock, in 1856.
In the 19th century, the wharf was one of the chief delivery points for ships bringing tea to the Pool of London. At its height, 80% of the dry produce imported to London passed through the wharf, which was nicknamed 'the Larder of London'. The Wharf was largely rebuilt following the Great Fire of Southwark in June 1861 and then continued in use for nearly a century until it was badly bombed during the Blitz in September 1940. The progressive adoption of containerisation during the 1960s led to the shipping industry moving to deep water ports further down the Thames and the subsequent closure of Hay's Wharf in 1970.
In the 1980s, with the increasing urban regeneration of the Thames Corridor and nearby London Docklands, the majority of the area was acquired by the St Martin's Property Corporation, the real estate arm of the State of Kuwait. The easterly end of the site was developed as London Bridge City of which Hay's Galleria forms part. The decision was made to retain the dock and to restore its tea and produce warehouses surrounding it to provide office accommodation and shops. The dock gates were permanently closed, the 'impounded' area of the dock was covered with a floor to the sill of the wharf-sides and the entire space was enclosed with a glass roof. This scheme was implemented by Twigg Brown Architects as part of their masterplan for the renewal strategy, of which The Navigators is the centrepiece.
The development was supported by the London Docklands Development Corporation. After its completion and opening in 1987, Hays Galleria became the first new visitor attraction of that period on the south of the river.
Steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction that typically features steam-powered machinery, especially in a setting inspired by industrialised Western civilisation during the 19th century.
Steampunk may also incorporate additional elements from the genres of fantasy, horror, historical fiction, alternate history, or other branches of speculative fiction, making it often a hybrid genre. The term steampunk's first known appearance was in 1987, though it now retroactively refers to many works of fiction created even as far back as the 1950s or 1960s.
Steampunk also refers to any of the artistic styles, clothing fashions, or subcultures, that have developed from the aesthetics of steampunk fiction, Victorian-era fiction, art nouveau design, and films from the mid-20th century. Various modern utilitarian objects have been modded by individual artisans into a pseudo-Victorian mechanical "steampunk" style, and a number of visual and musical artists have been described as steampunk.
The Navigators
A notoriously difficult object to photograph, because of its size and the relatively small space within which it is exhibited, The Navigators is a rivet-covered bronze sculpture with the face of a man and the body of an industrial-age ship, which is actually an enormous kinetic machine.
The 60-foot steampunk sculpture by artist David Kemp was installed in 1987 during the renovation of Hay's Galleria, which saw the conversion of the old wharf into a shopping centre. When activated, its oars move through the water at its sides.
Kemp is a British artist best known for his large assemblage sculptures. He lives on the Atlantic coast of West Cornwall where he scavenges for interesting bits to make his art from.
About his art he says: "I make things out of things, big things, little things, old things and new things. I like to recycle things, and find new uses for things that have been thrown away. Some things say something about their surroundings, and other things become something else."
The Navigators was one of Kemp's first major public installations. Since then, he has created a number of large works including the "Old Transformers," a pair of huge outdoor sculptures near Consett, County Durham.
Hay's Galleria is named after its original owner, the merchant Alexander Hay, who acquired the property - then a brewhouse - in 1651. In around 1840 John Humphrey Jr acquired a lease on the property and he asked William Cubitt (father-in-law to two of Humphrey's sons) to convert it into a 'wharf', in fact an enclosed dock, in 1856.
In the 19th century, the wharf was one of the chief delivery points for ships bringing tea to the Pool of London. At its height, 80% of the dry produce imported to London passed through the wharf, which was nicknamed 'the Larder of London'. The Wharf was largely rebuilt following the Great Fire of Southwark in June 1861 and then continued in use for nearly a century until it was badly bombed during the Blitz in September 1940. The progressive adoption of containerisation during the 1960s led to the shipping industry moving to deep water ports further down the Thames and the subsequent closure of Hay's Wharf in 1970.
In the 1980s, with the increasing urban regeneration of the Thames Corridor and nearby London Docklands, the majority of the area was acquired by the St Martin's Property Corporation, the real estate arm of the State of Kuwait. The easterly end of the site was developed as London Bridge City of which Hay's Galleria forms part. The decision was made to retain the dock and to restore its tea and produce warehouses surrounding it to provide office accommodation and shops. The dock gates were permanently closed, the 'impounded' area of the dock was covered with a floor to the sill of the wharf-sides and the entire space was enclosed with a glass roof. This scheme was implemented by Twigg Brown Architects as part of their masterplan for the renewal strategy, of which The Navigators is the centrepiece.
The development was supported by the London Docklands Development Corporation. After its completion and opening in 1987, Hays Galleria became the first new visitor attraction of that period on the south of the river.
Steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction that typically features steam-powered machinery, especially in a setting inspired by industrialised Western civilisation during the 19th century.
Steampunk may also incorporate additional elements from the genres of fantasy, horror, historical fiction, alternate history, or other branches of speculative fiction, making it often a hybrid genre. The term steampunk's first known appearance was in 1987, though it now retroactively refers to many works of fiction created even as far back as the 1950s or 1960s.
Steampunk also refers to any of the artistic styles, clothing fashions, or subcultures, that have developed from the aesthetics of steampunk fiction, Victorian-era fiction, art nouveau design, and films from the mid-20th century. Various modern utilitarian objects have been modded by individual artisans into a pseudo-Victorian mechanical "steampunk" style, and a number of visual and musical artists have been described as steampunk.