A creative collective in Bristol have launched a new platform as an interactive public art experience centred on Edward Colston’s empty plinth.
A wide range of contributors - from school children to established artists - will have the opportunity to submit designs which will be selected by an inter-generational panel of community members from all over Bristol.
The designs will then be brought to life in the digital realm on People's Platform and occupy the plinth in the city centre on rotation.
Anyone online anywhere in the world, or standing with a smart phone near the plinth will witness this unique series of visual statements about what those selected truly value.
Bristol organisations who have already signed up to be part of it include Watershed, Kuumba Centre, Colston’s Girls School, Fairfield School, Dolphin Primary School, Malcolm X Centre.
Colston has long been a divisive figure in the city, so CARGO - a collective creating heritage resources - have decided to showcase the personal visions of today’s diverse Bristolians on the empty plinth.
The slave trader’s statue being removed has been a topic of debate in the city of Bristol for years and it had been subject to a petition early last month to have it removed.
But during a Black Lives Matter protest on June 7 protesters took the matter into their own hands, pulled the statue down and threw it into the harbour.
The founders of CARGO have been dedicated to broadening Bristol’s understanding of its history in relation to the Transatlantic Slave Trade and its living legacy, which continues to shape the lives of Bristolians today.
The collective recently announced that they would be delivering a new curriculum in partnership with One Bristol Curriculum to integrate black history into the UK education system.
They will be restructuring systemic racism, beginning with a set of 15 history lesson plans for Key Stage 3, which consist of downloadable content for teachers and interactive online features.
The resources - which will be accessible in a matter of months - will hopefully aid in educating the minds of the young people about black people from the transatlantic slave trade all the way to the present day.
