This is no time for life's little luxuries

Is it right to be spending huge sums of money on public works of art, when the economy is in such desperate need of cash, asks Emma Suddaby.

I've been trying very hard not to mention the latest piece of Darwin-inspired artwork that is about to cost Shrewsbury taxpayers an estimated £200,000 of its £350,000 pricetag, but I can't bite my tongue any longer.

Construction of the Quantum Leap Project or "The Slinky" as some call it, is under starter's orders and it is hoped that by mid-May, it will be seen rising from the river bank, within the Geo-Garden to mark Darwin's bicentenary.

Much as I'd love to wax poetic about the real meaning of its quirky curves and congratulate town leaders for making such an inspired choice of commemoration - let's face it, there's a time and a place!

I'd truly love to feel able to admire the new sculpture for the beautiful piece of artwork it is, and were it in a gallery somewhere, having cost someone else's hard-earned cash to install, I could give it the time and thought and admiration it deserves.

However, it's about to be constructed on our already lovely riverside, in an area that has seen much investment and regeneration (if that's what you call it), and will be largely paid for by the hard-working folk of Shrewsbury.

Now I don't know about the rest of you, but when times are hard and I'm not sure my income will cover my out-goings, the little luxuries of life have to take a back seat.

I make sure basic essentials are covered and when things ease up a bit can allow myself the odd little treat again, to make life seem worthwhile. But by 'little treat', I mean a cream cake or a new scarf . . . not a costly piece of art.

We've hardly ignored our Darwin connection so far; we already have statues and artistic commemorations of his work and his value and importance to the town. It's just a shame so many Shrewsbury folk will now be labelled 'Philistines' for finding it hard to appreciate the Quantum Leap project and the Geo-Garden, when in more abundant times we'd be eager to welcome its arrival and muse on its subtleties.

How about using that £200,000 to regenerate parts of Shrewsbury that haven't yet seen such investment, and where a little attention could go a long way in the lives of living, breathing citizens?

What better way to mark the memory of a man who was all about evolution, than to spend £200,000 on helping Shrewsbury's citizens to thrive and move beyond these difficult timesÉ?

Now that's what I'd call progress.