"If Hull lost this it would be like the city losing a front tooth!" Nick Coupland, artist
After a huge and extremely fast fight, in 2009 Alan Boyson's Tree of Knowledge sculpture on the wall of the old Cromwell Secondary School in Charlestown was saved by Salford's community and the Tiles and Architectural Ceramics Society, as Salford City Council's bulldozers were poised for demolition.
Within two weeks, the Tree of Knowledge had been Grade II listed as a "rare surviving example of a bespoke 1960s ceramic mural" with a "high level of aesthetic and artistic quality"*.
The Tree of Knowledge is still standing and only this week workmen were tidying up the site – although it could do with a plaque and a few lights to show the city's pride.
Meanwhile, in Hull, two other Alan Boyson works are in peril. The first is the massive Three Ships mosaic mural that adorns the now closed BHS store. It was originally commissioned by the Co-op in the early 1960s to help bring the community together through art and shared values.
The mural is made from 4,224 panels, containing one million tiny cubes of Italian glass. Its scale and detail are absolutely stunning.
The Three Ships is believed to be England's largest mural and Boyson's biggest work. It commemorates Hull's renowned fishing industry, and if you look carefully, the stylised trawlers' masts actually spell the word 'Hull'.
As part of Hull's year as City of Culture, new memorials and murals have been commissioned to commemorate over 6,000 men and boys lost to the fishing industry – but this huge, iconic mural is in gross danger. And doesn't yet have the official backing of the City of Culture organisation.
In 2007, the Three Ships was locally listed by Hull City Council as a "superb example of modern public art" – but, as everyone in Salford knows, 'locally listed' means absolutely nothing (see the Salford Quays Cranes, Ye Olde Nelson and Black Horse pubs, the Dirty Old Town Gasworks etc).
There is also a second Boyson fish mural on the interior of the building which was only discovered last year and has no protection at all. In 2016, Hull Heritage Action Group and Hull Civic Society each applied separately to Historic England for Grade II listing for the Boyson works but were refused. They are appealing.
Meanwhile, Hull City Council has a 'City Plan' for the area where the sculptures are based, which includes something called the Albion Square Development - a mix of leisure, retail and housing. Developers have been invited to come up with proposals. This is one of the reasons why campaigners feel the murals are at risk – as does the Twentieth Century Society, or C20, which has them second on its list of Buildings At Risk (see here).
Both Hull City Council and Manor Property, which apparently owns the building, state that they will do everything to preserve the murals but campaigners want Grade II listed status to ensure their preservation.
"It is quite possible that without Grade II listing the former BHS building and the murals with it could be demolished without planning permission" explains Leigh Bird, of the Hull Heritage Action Group, who also runs the @BhsMuralHull Twitter campaign account.
"I used to stare at it as a kid, sitting on the edge of the fountain outside, in awe of it, and I don't feel any less awed by it now" she says "But it's more than that, isn't it? Because aside from the aesthetics, and its importance in terms of art, heritage and its place in Hull's post-war timeline, that mosaic is Hull. If I think of what Hull means to me, it is that mural; not the Humber Bridge, or the Deep, or even the Ferens. I've met friends there, waited for buses there, been stood up there – you name it.
"We don't want to stop the regeneration of an area that needs it, or hold back progress" she adds "But with listing in place, the Council can work with developers to build in a viable way to preserve the mural for the people of Hull. With people like the Twentieth Century Society running their own mural campaign, and Salford's Tree of Knowledge as an example of what can be achieved with Boyson's work, we know it can be done" she insists.
A Keep the Co-op (BHS) Mural in Hull petition has been launched and signed by over 3,000 people, one of whom wrote "Only an idiot would want to put at risk the most iconic building in the city centre. A fantastic piece of public art. It really must be preserved. I'm not against change if needed, but this is one we need to leave well alone..."
Having saved Salford's Alan Boyson Tree of Knowledge sculpture, the community is now being urged to help the Hull campaign to list The Three Ships. There are two Change.org petitions - click here and click here
*See also previous Salford Star articles on the Tree of Knowledge...
Salford's Tree of Knowledge Saved – click here
Tourists arrive to see Alan Boyson's Salford work – click here
Main photo by Mike Bartlett
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