Skip to content
Trafalgar Square

Ominous whipped cream art comes to Trafalgar Square

Tom Hoepf
Tom Hoepf
Trafalgar Square
‘The End,’ selected proposal for the Fourth Plinth, Trafalgar Square, was on view at the National Gallery, London, in 2017. Image credit: James O Jenkins, courtesy: heatherphillipson.co.uk

LONDON (AP) – The latest eye-catching sight in London’s Trafalgar Square is a giant swirl of whipped cream topped with a cherry, a fly and a drone.

The sculpture by artist Heather Phillipson was installed Thursday atop an empty plinth in the landmark city square, famous as the location of Nelson’s Column and as a public protest site. The work, titled The End, is interactive – visitors can live-stream the view from the drone on their mobile phones or computers.

Phillipson said the piece, whose unveiling was postponed by four months due to the coronavirus pandemic, was a “monument to hubris and impending collapse” but also symbolized the hope of renewal. It is scheduled to stay on top of the square’s Fourth Plinth until spring 2022.

The plinth was erected in the square in 1841 for a never-completed equestrian statue. Since 1999 it has been occupied by a series of modern artworks.

___

Copyright 2020 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

AP-WF-07-30-20 1606GMT