It's hard to get the full effect of Mary Lorraine Mchugh's portrayal of the blue Salford Quays Cranes in a mere photograph. The depth, texture and energy of the piece has to be seen by being close up to the vibrant artwork. It gives off the same vibe as a stained glass window. And that's how Mary wants the Cranes to be viewed – as icons…
"I was concerned when they got rid of the cranes in October and I thought `What can I do in memorial of the Cranes?'" she says "I thought I would paint them but I didn't want a painting as such of the Cranes, I wanted it to be an iconic image.
"People will look at the canvas and say `Oh that looks like a church window'" she explains "It's not a religious image but it's an iconic industrial image, and I would class myself as an industrial artist and photographer."
Mary's photographs of the last days of Agecroft Colliery from over twenty years ago captured The Death of a Pit (see the e-book of photos click here) and now she's turned her attention to the Cranes to capture more Salford heritage that has been destroyed but lives on in people's memories.
In the artwork, the Cranes are portrayed tiny as a deliberate comment on the Council, Mayor and co which ordered their demolition last year…
"I made the Cranes small because they were invisible to some people - those who got rid of them, the powers that be, they didn't see them as icons" says Mary "I wanted them so small that you have really got to look because they were invisible to some people who didn't notice the beauty of the blue Cranes."
Everything in the artwork is symbolic, from the Cranes depiction in black ink – "I wanted them to be like a northern drawing" – to the burst of energy that surrounds the structures…
"It is a burst, I wanted it like that because the dockers had that energy and they worked and worked and worked, this is a beautiful energy" she explains "It's about the beauty and energy of the Cranes, a creative explosion."
Mary, originally from Whit Lane but now living in Ireland, came over specially to create the piece, working for two weeks at Ordsall Community Arts to be in the same area where many of the dockers and their families lived. She remembers the docks well, although not the Cranes…
"The Cranes were only there from the 60s and I had friends in Howard Street going down to the docks, although we wouldn't have been able to go into the docks because it was all walled off, so we wouldn't have seen them" she recalls "But when the Quays were opened we could go and see something that was part of that. You could see how magnificent it all was…like the mills of the cotton industry, and Agecroft Pit with the wheel and everything …It's gone but we've still got to keep its spirit alive.
"The Cranes weren't saved but their memory will live on, like the workers, the families, the heritage of what made Salford great" she adds "I think art is a creative positive vehicle to make things happen in very, very small way but big...I want the spirit of the Cranes to carry on and this is the first step. I hope something positive will come out of this canvas and want to do other things connected with the Cranes, maybe a Blue Crane Day in October or something…"
Everything from the working space to the materials that Mary used for the artwork was donated. The Fred and Maureen Done Charitable Foundation sent a cheque for materials and her flight from Ireland, Fred Aldous donated the canvas, Rosco donated the lighting filters that give the work its stained glass effect and Robinsons wood yard gave her the timber for the frame.
Meanwhile, Ordsall Community Arts and St Clements Church helped with studio space, and now Mary wants to sell the artwork and donate all the proceeds to the two organisations which she says "do great work in the Ordsall community".
The artwork goes on show for a week only, from this Wednesday 21st May – 28th May, in the foyer of the Marriott Victoria and Albert Hotel, Water Street, M3 4JQ (phone 0161 832 1188) and is up for sale for £500 or near offers.
Even the exhibition space is symbolic… "I thought about putting it on the Quays, then wanted it in Ordsall because most of the dockers lived here but then I thought of the Manchester Ship Canal, and the Victoria and Albert Hotel was a warehouse right on the river" Mary explains "And May 21st is the 120th anniversary of the opening of the Canal…"
Everything symbolic…
See previous Salford Star articles on the controversial death of the blue Salford Quays Cranes - click here and click here
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