Go Superlambananas! was an art exhibition that took place in Liverpool, England, during the city's European Capital of Culture celebrations in 2008. Based upon Taro Chiezo's Superlambanana, which had been located in Liverpool since 1998, the exhibit consisted of 124 two metre high replicas, which were located throughout Liverpool and the surrounding areas. Each mini-Superlambanana was individually designed by local community groups and artists, with a range of public and private sector organisations providing sponsorship funding. The mini-Superlambananas were on display for ten weeks, from June to August 2008.[1]

Pete Price's Super Laugh Banana

Background

edit

The Go Superlambananas! art exhibition was developed and based upon the Superlambanana sculpture that has been located in Liverpool since 1998. The sculpture is a cross between a banana and a lamb, designed by Manhattan-based Japanese artist Taro Chiezo for the 1998 ArtTransPennine Exhibition. Superlambanana's design is also heavily influenced by the history of Liverpool itself, as historically both sheep and bananas were common cargos in the city's docks. The original sculpture weighs almost eight tons and stands 17 feet tall. Throughout its history the sculpture has been located in various areas throughout the city and on occasions even further afield. It currently stands on Tithebarn Street, outside the Liverpool John Moores University Avril Robarts Library/Learning Resource Centre.[2]

History

edit

The Go Superlambananas! exhibition was developed by the Liverpool Culture Company (LCC), led by its Creative Director Phil Redmond, in partnership with the Wild In Art. As part of the city's Capital of Culture celebrations, the LCC were eager to develop a cultural event in which local people could be involved not just in its consumption, but also its production.[3] The eventual idea settled on, was to build upon the Superlambanana artwork, which had over time come to be recognised as a symbol of Liverpool in itself.[4] As a result, 124 mini-SuperLambananas were created, each of which acted as a blank slate, on which various groups throughout the city could develop and design their own cultural contribution the city's celebrations.[3]

Auction

edit

At the end of their ten-week run, the mini Superlambananas were auctioned off for the Lord Mayor's charities, with each having a guide price ranging from £3,000 to £8,000.[5] The first of two auctions was held at St George's Hall on the 9 September 2008 with 68 Superlambananas up for sale. In total they sold for £550,000 or approximately £7,800 each, well above estimates. The highest bid on the night was £25,000, paid by the Chairman of National Museums Liverpool for 'Mandy' Mandala Superlambanana, designed and created by Cheshire artist Patricia Lee, whilst Phil Redmond, creative director of the Liverpool Culture Company, purchased four lots for a total of £55,000. Other notable purchasers included comedian John Bishop, playwright Fred Lawless and Big Brother star Craig Phillips.[6] A second, internet-based auction took place on 16 September 2008 with 25% of the proceeds going to charity.

Exhibits

edit

124 replica superlambananas were created as part of the exhibition. Each one was designed and sponsored by different organisations and subsequently located throughout the city and in some instances further afield.

Complete list of mini-Superlambananas
Liverpool City Centre[7][8][9][10][11][12]
Name Artist(s) Sponsor(s) Location
24hoursuperlambanana Debbie Ryan '08 Business Connect Clayton Square
Art Vandelist Artvandelay.com PS Collective East Village, Duke Street
Atlambtic Companion Nicola McGovern Atlantic Container Line Prince's Dock
B of the Baa Phil Costello Northwest Regional Development Agency Exchange Flags
Baa Baa Braille Sheep Jola Kurzeja-Ryan; students from the National Blind Children's Society Merseytravel Liverpool Lime Street station
Baa-ve New World Sally Olding Liverpool Vision Liverpool Town Hall
BackBitternBanana Sophie Bower; Kathryn Pattullo Liverpool School of Art and Design, Liverpool JMU Metropolitan Cathedral
Banana Rock Christine O'Reilly Wilson Aggregate Industries The Strand
Beryl Sebastian Youndaddaction; Liverpool Youth Advisory Group; Sophie Backhouse; Ian Town Youngaddaction Liverpool Clayton Square
Bloomin' Lamb Banana Lower Lee School Woolton in Bloom; Woolton Educational and Recreational Trust Woolton Street
Cargo Phillip Marsden St George's Hall, Liverpool City Council St George's Hall
Chops Alix Dryden Northwest Regional Development Agency Exchange Flags
Commercial District Skyline David Flanning Liverpool Commercial District Partnership St Paul's Square
Deerlamboltnana T.J. Dolan Wild In Art East Village, Duke Street
Ewes Water Wisely Lisa Parry; Christian Ewen United Utilities Albert Dock, City Centre
Fire Cracker to Martian Skies Laurence Payot Utility Bold Street
First Past the Post Pamela Holstein Liverpool Chamber of Commerce and Industry Old Hall Street, City Centre
Flora Rosalind Hargreaves Northwest Regional Development Agency Exchange Flags
Friendship Forever Jessica Gardiner; Benjamin Small St John's Shopping Centre St John's Shopping Centre
Green Lamb Ed Butler; Julian Taylor Holiday Inn Holiday Inn, Lime Street
Herd Days Night Mark Jones Maghull Developments Hope Street
Homer Kim Tan; Creative Services; Liverpool City Council Liverpool Mutual Homes; Fusion 21 Wellington Column, Lime Street, City Centre
I love Granadaland Laura McCreesh; Mike Badger ITV Granada Metquarter, City Centre
Kenny the Superlamb Barbara Galt; Children from Kensington City and North Neighbourhood Management Services Hall Lane, Kensington
Koppy Graham Berry; the Apple Agency Adidas LFC Shop, Liverpool One, City Centre
Lamb-bassador Anna Povall; Benjamin Small World Firefighter Games 2008 Echo Arena, City Centre
Lambline Rachael Ward Merseytravel James Street station, City Centre
Lamsa Katriona Beales; Finoon Saleh The Bluecoat Society Bluecoat Chambers
Light Exposure, Light Emission Smiling Wolf Balfour Beatty The Strand, City Centre
Loop of Life Mike Curtis Crowne Plaza Hotels and Resorts Crowne Plaza, Prince's Dock, City Centre
Mandy Mandala Superlambanana Patricia Lee; Arts in Regeneration; residents of Granby, Toxteth and Dingle South Central Management Team; Liverpool City Council Formerly Princes Boulevard, later Museum of Liverpool
Mona Charlotte Brown English Cities Fund St Paul's Square, City Centre
Monument to the Superlambanana Andrew Jackson Public Monuments and Sculpture Association World Museum Liverpool, William Brown Street
Our George Liverpool O8 Volunteers; KECS Creative Community Arts 08 Welcome; Liverpool Culture Company St George's Plateau
Our Working Community Holly Langley North West TUC Wellington Column, St George's Plateau
Pete Price's Super Laugh Banana Pete Price; Phillip Marsden Liverpool Daily Post; Liverpool Echo Metquarter, City Centre
Petite Fleur Helen Marie-Gilmour Metquarter Metquarter, City Centre
Portraits Clair Freeman WT Jenkins Albert Dock, City Centre
Purple Sky at Night Alex Jackson Wrenco Hope Street
Push Me Pull Ewe Phillip Marsden; Ben Cook Sayers St John's Shopping Centre
Reflectana Annabel Wakefield Kier Construction Debenhams, Liverpool One, City Centre
Rocksy Ben Cook Northwest Regional Development Agency Exchange Flags, City Centre
Roy G Biv Olivia Simpson DCT Civil Engineering The Strand
Savio the Superlambanana Kerry Hunt; Savio High School Alliance & Leicester St Paul's Square, City Centre
Sgt Pepper Liverpool Hope University fine art and design students Hard Day's Night Hotel Blakes Restaurant, North John Street, City Centre
Super 'WiFi' Lambananafon Jon Wood; Gareth Shuttleworth; Chimp Creative BT/Fon Echo Arena, City Centre
Superabbeyroadbanana Vince Cleghorne; Kensington Youth Inclusion Project Kier North West Brownlow Hill
SuperChaiseLongueBanana Leanne Wookey; Team a go-go; Julian Taylor; J&A upholstery Bruntwood Radisson SAS Hotel, Old Hall Street, City Centre
Superchromebanana Stephen Heaton; Lawn Creative; Lloyds Autobody Jurys Inn Kings Waterfront, City Centre
Superconnectedlambanana Alison Little BT Openzone Wireless Broadband British Home Stores, Lord Street
SuperCottonwoolbanana Kate Bedford Bruntwood Cotton Exchange, City Centre
Superfitbanana Shape Design Lifestyles Fitness Centre Millenium House, Whitechapel
Superfive-a-daybanana Vince Cleghorne; Kensington Junior Youth Inclusion Project National Museums Liverpool Walker Art Gallery, William Brown Street
Supergrassbanana Stephen Heaton; Lawn Creative; Julian Taylor Hill Dickinson Lawyers Old Hall Street
Superkalazarbanana Ektor Diaz; Rod Dillon Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine Pembroke Place
Superlamba-x-ray and child Dominic Foster; Ashlea Haynes; Liverpool Hope University fine arts student Liverpool Women's NHS Foundation Trust Liverpool Women's Hospital
Superlambananaleaves Alison Little Brock Carmichael Architects; BCA Landscape and Project Services Cotton Exchange, City Centre
Superlambananatree Amanda Oliphant Virgin Trains West Coast Liverpool Lime Street station
Superlambgranada Mark Nuttall ITV Granada Liverpool One, City Centre
Superlambswoolbanana Ian Town Wild in Art 08 Place, 36-38 Whitechapel
SuperLawbanana Clare Gammond; Jeanne-Marie Kenny Hill Dickinson Lawyers Old Hall Street, City Centre
SuperLewis'sLamb 152 Lewis's Visual Team Lewis's Lewis's Department Store
SuperLightBanana Lisa Rostron; Lawn Creative; Julian J Taylor 2020 Liverpool St George's Hall
Superlordmayorlambanana Brian Hanlon Liverpool City Council Liverpool Town Hall, City Centre
SuperLoveBanana Anna Benson Liverpool Registration Services Cotton Exchange, City Centre
SuperPlazaLambanana Kate Bedford Bruntwood The Plaza, Old Hall Street, City Centre
SuperRoyalambanana Kate Bedford Bruntwood Queens Arcade, Castle Street, City Centre
SuperSgtPepperYellowSubmarineBanana Paul McKay Alliance & Leicester Albert Dock, City Centre
SuperStudentlambanana Jeanne-Marie Kenny University of Liverpool Brownlow Hill
SuperWagBagBanana Nook and Willow; John McNally Liverpool City Central Business Improvement District Houghton Street, City Centre
Sushi, Lamb Tempurabanana Table 5 now!! Linda Barlow Sapparo Teppanyaki Echo Arena, City Centre
The Best of British Mark Garrod Cains Cains Brewery
The Loving Lamb Annemarie Read Greater Merseyside Learning Providers Federation Berry Street
The North End Claire Stringer; Trinity RC Primary School Vauxhall Neighbourhood Council NSPCC, Great Homer Street
The Rope Walker BDP; Shape Design BDP St Peter's Square
Top Banana Finch and Candida Boyes Rumford Investments 20 Chapel Street, City Centre
Twinkle The Langhorne Family Malmaisson Malmaisson, Prince's Dock, City Centre
Twinny Lambanana KECS Creative Community Arts European Year of Intercultural Hope Street
United Lambanana Lisa Parry; Rachel Teare United Utilities Albert Dock, City Centre
Working Towards the Future Mike Badger; St Matthew's Primary School; St Mary's Primary School Portemps People Development Group Church Street
Yellow Superlambanana in a cage 2008 Uniform Uniform Arthouse Square
Zip Janice Egerton Liverpool Hope University The Cornerstone Building
North Liverpool[13][14][15][16][17][18]
Name Artist(s) Sponsor(s) Location
Blueberry Banana Debbie Ryan; Blueberry Park Primary School Berrybridge Housing Association Blueberry School, Ackers Hall Avenue
Both Sides of the Baaas Pauly Riley; students from NOCN Art Programme HM Prison Liverpool HM Prison Liverpool, Walton
Bridge-it Louise Wood; Clubmoor Youth Centre Art Valley Neighbourhood Management Services Clubmoor Youth Centre, Larkhill Lane
Cobanana Cobalt Youth Board; Andrew Weston Cobalt Housing Lower House Lane and Utting Avenue
Fazakerly Night Fever Vik Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Aintree Hospital
Fizz Sharon Mutch; Fazakerley 506 Detached Youth Project Cobalt Housing Fazakerley Community Federation
It's Just a Superlambanana Harry Harris Community Justice Centre, North Liverpool Community Justice Centre, Vauxhall
Peekaboo Newsham Superlambanana AiR Associates; Communities of North Liverpool Arts in Regeneration and Newsham; Adult Learning Services Newsham Park, Newsham Drive
Rocking Superlambanana Alex Corina Wild in Art; Royal Liverpool Children's Hospital Alder Hey Imagine Appeal Royal Liverpool Hospital Alder Hey
Stanley Vince Cleghorne; Hugh Baird College Evolve Neighbourhood Regeneration; Hugh Baird College Hugh Baird College, Stanley Road
Starry Sunflower Alan Murray Cosmopolitan Housing Group Olive Mount Gardens, Wavertree
Super St. Domingo Lamb Banana Candida Boyes Everton Football Club Goodison Park
SuperFanBanana Steve Rooney; Sue Williams; Liverpool Royal School for the Blind Liverpool Football Club Anfield, Anfield Road
SuperConeBanana Jacqueline Boylan Open Culture ICDC, Edge Lane
Superlidbanana Nicki McCubbing; Orrell Park Youth Club Alt Valley Neighbourhood Management Services Black Bull Pub, Cedar Road
Tinky Neil Keating; Alsop High School Liverpool Housing Trust Walton-on-the-Hill Church
South Liverpool[8][19][20][21][22][23]
Name Artist(s) Sponsor(s) Location
Colours of Hope Laura Cheston; St Jerome's Primary School Liverpool Hope University Taggart Lodge, Hope Park
Generation 21 Toxteth Learning Networks School; Roz Hyde Liverpool Healthy Cities Aigburth Road
Happy Feet Julie Edwards; Hunts Cross Primary School Liverpool City Council Park near Hunts Cross Library
LambMapBanana Claire Stringer South Central Management Team; Liverpool City Council Allerton Library
Peel Lisa Parry; Ben Cook Riverside Group Speke Boulevard
Springy Springwood Heath Primary School Liverpool City Council Springwood Heath Primary School, Danefield Road
Superbeezbuzzbyawildlambanana Jan Bell; Caroline Hunt HLF Wildflower Heroes Project National Wildflower Centre
SuperLarryLambanana Mike Badger; Lawrence Community Primary School Riverside Group Picton Children's Centre, Lawrence Road
The Big Hope Big Hope delegates Liverpool Hope University The Gateway, Hope Park
The Lee Valley CAAT Holly Langley; Belle Vale and Naylorsfield Community Association Lee Valley Housing Association Belle Vale Shopping Centre
Tudorlambanana Gateacre C.C. School; KECS Creative Friends of Gateacre; Gateacre C.C. School Gateacre Village
Urbananasplash Julian Taylor Urban Splash Matchworks
World Changer Hannah Marshall Frontline Church Frontline Centre, Lawrence Road
Youth Division Wade Deacon Arts Team; Sophie Backhouse; Ian Town BBC North West Tonight; Arts Council England North West Speke Boulevard
Rest of Merseyside[24][25]
Name Artist(s) Sponsor(s) Location
Cloudorama Paul Cousins Lady Lever Art Gallery Lady Lever Art Gallery, Port Sunlight
Culture Chalk Jacqueline Boylan The Grange; Pyramids Shopping Centre Pyramids Shopping Centre, Wirral
Flora Lambanana Rosalind J Hargreaves Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council Birkenhead Park, Wirral
Past Port to the Future Clair Freeman Port Sunlight Museum and Garden Village Port Sunlight Vision Museum, Wirral
Rover Candida Boyes Tranmere Rovers Prenton Park, Wirral
SuperStegbanana Mark Hendry; Team a-go-go; Ben Cook Ness Gardens; University of Liverpool Ness Gardens, Wirral
Tiger in the Woods Candida Boyes Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council, Liverpool Culture Company Coastal Road and Shore Road, Ainsdale
Outside Merseyside[26][27]
Name Artist(s) Sponsor(s) Location
Lovemedoodle Adam Pitt Virgin Trains West Coast London Euston station (and later Liverpool Lime Street station)
Smiley Lamb Alex Austin; Emily Lansley Halton Borough Council Runcorn station
The Highest Superlambanana Students from Flintshire and Denbighshire schools Denbighshire County Council Moel Famau Country Park
The Superlambridge Joanne Kelly; Emily Lansley Halton Borough Council Runcorn station

See also

edit

References

edit

Notes

  1. ^ "Go SuperLambBananas!". Go SuperLambBananas!. Archived from the original on 12 December 2008. Retrieved 1 September 2008.
  2. ^ "Superlambanana moves to new home". BBC News. 13 April 2005. Retrieved 1 September 2008.
  3. ^ a b Shaw (2008), p17
  4. ^ Shaw (2008), p9
  5. ^ Jones, Catherine (9 September 2008). "Superlambananas up for auction". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 15 September 2008.
  6. ^ Superlambanana auction raises £550,000 for charity
  7. ^ Shaw (2008), p28-180
  8. ^ a b Shaw (2008), p186
  9. ^ Shaw (2008), p198
  10. ^ Shaw (2008), p230
  11. ^ Shaw (2008), p246-248
  12. ^ Shaw (2008), p266
  13. ^ Shaw (2008), p182
  14. ^ Shaw (2008), p188-196
  15. ^ Shaw (2008), p200
  16. ^ Shaw (2008), p204-216
  17. ^ Shaw (2008), p238
  18. ^ Shaw (2008), p268
  19. ^ Shaw (2008), p202
  20. ^ Shaw (2008), p222-228
  21. ^ Shaw (2008), p232-236
  22. ^ Shaw (2008), p240-244
  23. ^ Shaw (2008), p274-276
  24. ^ Shaw (2008), p250-258
  25. ^ Shaw (2008), p270-272
  26. ^ Shaw (2008), p218-220
  27. ^ Shaw (2008), p260-262

Bibliography

edit