The opening of the Sydney Metro this month saw Tom Bass’ famous ‘Fountain’ sculpture wonderfully restored and reinstated at the new Martin Place Metro Station.
Originally commissioned by P&O in 1962 and completed in 1963, the sculpture quickly caught the attention of Sydney’s residents and office workers with its wave-like shape, and for uniquely ‘bit[ing] into the very skin of the architecture’ as described by award-winning sculptor Richard Goodwin and referenced by Felicity Fenner, curatorial advisor for Macquarie Group. The sculpture attracted controversy when it was satirised for its resemblance to a urinal by OZ Magazine in 1964. Though the editors were charged for indecency and fined, Tom Bass said of their stunt, ‘fair enough’. Initially planned to be carved directly into the granite façade of 55 Hunter Street, ‘Fountain’ was reworked to a copper sculpture for concerns around fabrication and functionality.
With the demolition of 55 Hunter Street, the sculpture was rescued—a rarity for site specific public art—and was levered out in three parts to be stored at a Metro depot.
Restoration involved soda blasting the copper surface, and reapplying a patina and protective wax to ensure the sculpture’s longevity. Water flow systems were replaced to better control pressure and impurity. The sculpture’s installation height and orientation match its original location, with the former street level line below, foregrounding the history of the piece.
‘Fountain’ sits alongside two heritage works by sculptor Douglas Annand, and six other major works commissioned by Sydney Metro and Macquarie Group.
Recently, journalist Linda Morris covered the renewal and installation in a Sydney Morning Herald article, click here to read more.
TBSSS would like to thank Macquarie Group and One Elizabeth Precinct who were committed to acknowledging and embracing the area’s urban history, as well as working so closely with Tom’s estate during the restoration period.
Be sure to visit ‘Fountain‘ when you’re next catching the new Sydney Metro!
Photograph above: Tom Bass’ ‘Fountain‘. Picture courtesy of One Elizabeth Precinct and photographer Brett Boardman.
