Oswestry-made Knife Angel sculpture will be displayed in Shropshire after tour
Drivers heading into Oswestry will be welcomed by the 26ft Knife Angel sculpture.
The owners of the British Ironwork Centre have revealed that when the Knife Angel returns from a tour of the country to raise awareness of knife crime, it will stand in the grounds of centre, overlooking the A5 near Oswestry.
Clive Knowles, the man behind the statue, has also confirmed plans for a spiral viewing platform, inspired by the Statue of Liberty.
Mr Knowles is currently petitioning the Mayor of London’s office in a bid to get per mission for the monument displayed on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square, although he has been told it does not meet the criteria.
“It’s taken two and a half years to build and at the moment it’s sitting ungraciously on the edge of the car park at the British Ironwork Centre waiting for London to gain some courage to allow it to fulfil its destiny,” Mr Knowles said.
“But once it’s finished having a voice and getting knife crime reduced, it will have a permanent home here in Shropshire.”
The plans have been drawn up by artist Graham Andrews from Shrewsbury, who came up with the idea for a spiral viewing platform, inspired by the Statue of Liberty in New York.
“I think it will look beautiful once it’s complete,” Mr Knowles said. “It will be a very fitting tribute and something to be proud of. We can have an influence on national decisions and programmes here in Shropshire. People think you can’t have an effect if you’re outside of London but that’s not true.”
Coventry is the latest city that has expressed an interest in loaning the Knife Angel and the city’s bishop has plans to display it in the cathedral’s ruins.
Mr Knowles added: “The more the Mayor of London rebuffs the national peace monument, the more other cities step forward and show they have the courage to represent and face the issue of knife crime.”
He is planning a peaceful protest outside the mayor’s office later this year with families involved in creating the statue.
The Knife Angel project “Save a Life, Surrender Your Knife” was run by the British Ironwork Centre in conjunction with police forces across England.
Earlier this year the Oswestry-based project was jointly awarded the Rotary International Peace Award alongside Médecins Sans Frontières which works to alleviate suffering and protect life in war zones and recently helping refugees crossing the Mediterranean.
