Laurence Payot
2009
Paint on wood
Inspired by the theatre and stage scenery, Laurence Payot created this life-like swan sculpture for the River. Made of just a flat, painted piece of timber, the sculpture created an elegant trompe l'oeil. From certain viewpoints it tricked the viewer into thinking it was a real swan, though as you walked past it and the perspective changed you could see that it was two dimensional, and from the other side of the river it appeared to be just an unfinished piece of wood. Swans are commonly seen in this river, though through the artificial set-up of this work, the swan became a character and the riverbank became a scene.
A swan was a very fitting choice of creature to base this piece on and because of this the work was subtle but very successful, with the majority of passers-by (and even a swan or two) mistaking the sculpture to be real.
Laurence Payot's work was exhibited as part of River from Friday 29th May - Friday 5th June 2009. Please click on Artists' Profiles for more information about Payot's practice and a link to her website.