If you head to Aldgate at the moment, you might come across a stone wall with some curious creatures on it. Resembling a crumbling curved section of wall or a dry-stone shelter on a mountain-top, the tactile work features hybrid creatures, from giant snail shells with human limbs to cross-legged snakes.
It’s a work of art by Jocelyn McGregor, and as the inaugural Aldgate Square Commission, will be here until next May.
Unlike most forms of public art, this has not been placed on a plinth with the intention that visitors feel encouraged to touch the artwork, and use it to sit, pause, and engage with, while enjoying a moment of connection with nature and art in Aldgate Square. It is hoped that the use of stone will provide a natural habitat for insects, too.
You can find the sculpture just outside St Botolph with Aldgate church, next to Aldgate tube station.
The work will also feature as part of Sculpture in the City’s 11th edition which opens to the public on 21st June with displays across the City of London. The Sculpture in the City Aldgate Square Commission is delivered in partnership with Aldgate Connect BID and the City of London Outdoor Arts Programme.
As long as they are not eating my runner beans!