Northumberlandia

The world's largest human form sculpted into the landscape

Northumberlandia is a landmark feature designed by world renowned artist Charles Jencks, which celebrates the earth’s natural power and the human ability to reshape landscape into a dramatic form. Lying at the entrance to south east Northumberland, near the town of Cramlington, she will be up to 34 metres high and 400 metres in length. Most importantly Northumberlandia will be the centrepiece for a 29 hectare public park in the urban fringe between the rolling countryside of mid Northumberland and the urban areas of south east Northumberland and Newcastle to the south. This ambitious piece of public art will be made from some 1.5 million tonnes of soil and clay from Shotton surface mine. The Banks Group which operates the mine and Blagdon Estate, which own the land, have commissioned Charles Jencks. Banks and Blagdon will use the unique opportunity and resources made available by the mining operations to create the new landform. The vision is to establish a new landmark feature at the gateway to Northumberland which will be recognised as a piece of art in itself, and will also provide a focal point for a new public park for use by the local community and visitors to the area. The commissioning brief for Charles Jencks was to mark this natural gateway and the transition between the conurbation of Cramlington and the countryside of Northumberland with a new landscape which could be enjoyed by the local community. It would utilise and celebrate the machinery and skills of the mining industry which has a long history in the region, whilst using the residual product of operations in a new and creative way.

Speaking of the inspiration behind Northumberlandia, Charles said:
“People quite unconsciously empathise with forms that relate to their physiognomy, particularly the face and torso. Here it is the far off Cheviot Hills that are pulled into the foreground by the similar curves and shapes of the body. The idea of ‘borrowing the landscape’, and miniaturising it, is an old one although not quite as old as relating landforms to our bodies. For thousands of years cultures across the world have built large scale effigies of human and animal forms. Northumberlandia does not relate to a particular goddess or religion, it is a landscape which incorporates references to the human body towards which we have a natural empathy. The landform can be enjoyed in parts and within many different contexts including the distant landscape, the causeways, lakes and willow islands, and viewing pavilions.”

City and County
November 2009