Power and Public Sculptures: the History of the Queen Victoria Monument

Since antiquity, the construction of monuments has realized mans need to solidify evidence of prosperity, power or success- in fine and indestructible materials. Where many cities grow and evolve in contentious political environments – transitioning from a colonial to a post-colonial state, aspects of urban landscape including public sculpture take on particular significance, by transforming public spaces into ideologically charged spots. Collectively, these politically fueled spaces, their relationships with time and the surrounding environment demonstrate a history imbued with struggle among interest groups in search of sovereignty.

As one groups seek governance over the other, the urban landscape becomes a canvas upon which this power struggle and cultural shift finds expression. In the case of the Commonwealth empire, bronze figures representing abstract virtues, heroic individuals and functionaries are often viewed as propaganda that allows for the constant practice and legalization of power, that transcends life and time. Their scale and value means these politically charged representations are fashioned in the hope that they will forever remain an echo or silent nod in favor of one distinct colonial regime, power or history. Thus, with time their permanency becomes increasingly controversial, but none the less important when positioned within an ever changing political and cultural climate.

Queen Victoria and her relationship with the Commonwealth Queen Victoria has remained a monarch most notably associated with Britain’s great age of industrial expansion, economic progress and especially, empire. The Victorian Era, characterized by the ‘constitutional monarchy’, was one where the monarch had very few powers in exchange for much more influence. Despite a decline in sovereign power, Queen Victoria continually highlighted that any monarch who is instilled with a high level of prestige and was ready to master the details of political life, could exert an important influence over nations. Her 63-year reign extended longer than any of her predecessors, and upon her death it was said that Britain had a worldwide empire for which the sun never set. John Hughes representation of the late Queen from 1908 undoubtably captures many of the sentiments permeated throughout her reign.

Perched on a heavy masonry plinth, high above its viewers, the scale not only establishes a power and sovereignty that is almost ‘larger than life’ but gesturally makes the individual feel small, surveilled and submissive. Its bronze materiality validates the feelings of solidity, value and longevity that accompanied her reign. By formalizing her memory into a monument in this way, the audience can recognize the permanency of monarchal influence not only on the past, but the fabric for which the future is sewn. As the bronze darkens with time, her solidity and power remains, manifesting a grip over our history that may be discounted, but is assuredly ever-present. Gazing down upon her surroundings she endures to oversee the law of the land, sustaining an overshadowing scrutiny over her urban landscape.

The Erection and Destruction of the Victoria Monument in Dublin, as well as its Recontextualization in SydneyIn 1902, Hughes, a missionary of the new Romantic-Realist sculpture, was commissioned by The Royal Dublin Society to prepare the statue of Victoria for placement in Dublin, honoring her memory and visit in 1900, Ideally suited to ideological subjects, Hughes sought to create a naturalistic representation of the Queen that was also symbolist, with strong emotional currents that made it ideal as a vehicle for the ideological celebration of loyalty toward the imperial centre. Upon completion, the work was received as “a piece of workmanship as dignified as it is beautiful”, with The Irish Times outlining the belief that such an honorable memorial not only “increase[ed] the reputation of Mr. Hughes” but “added materially to the artistic and historical wealth of Dublin”.

14 years after the statue’s installation, Leinster House became the seat of parliament after Ireland’s Independence. Around this time, The Irish Times began reporting many discussions were in progress for the removal of the monument “on the basis that its continued presence there is repugnant to national feeling, and that, from an artistic point of view, it disfigures the architectural beauty of the parliamentary buildings.” The statue became a visual symbol for the struggle for Irish Freedom and an unwelcome reminder of former links to Britain. The heavy ponderous form was ridiculed for being ugly with time (referenced as the “auld bitch “) as artistic taste no longer favored grandiloquence of Edwardian public sculpture. Following a movement against it, it was removed in 1948 and place in store.

The statue of the Queen herself was later gifted to Australia on a “loan until recalled” basis – as part of an urban conservation scheme which saw her refurbished and re-erected in 1990 in front of the Queen Victoria Building. Reframed in her new context, Victoria speaks to a colonial and historical audience with her presence and relationship to the remainder of the city being often quiet, unnoticed or otherwise a way point on route to the historical aspects of Sydney. Due to the stereotypical public display of one reality of history within Australia, some bitterness exists toward her imposition into the urban landscape, upon further scrutiny into her history.

At first glance, one doesn’t realize the statues recontextualization, but with research it is clear the statue shows an effort to portray Victoria Regina as the Irish Queen rather than the British Sovereign – for example she wears a simple coronet rather than the royal or imperial grown – the star on her left breast and the pendant badge featuring shamrocks, crowned harps and the St Patrick’s Cross. Although rather than not acknowledging our shortcomings by “tearing old things down” , some have used the imposition of this statue and line of history on urban landscape to give rise to additions and the reimagination of pedestrian ugliness to acknowledge multiple histories. For example, Sydney Statues Project launched a full art clothing scheme for the statues of Sydney, designing 70s and 80s costumes to not only bring awareness of the social, cultural and political history drawn to the statues but recontextualize them.

This particular project was heavily steeped in historical research, with its inclusion of historians, Indigenous consultants and the History Council of NSW to given rise to many unknown realities and stories through the costumes – with the statues becoming a reawaked platform for retelling Australia’s cultural history to a contemporary audience (Figure 5). It is important in any nation to acknowledge its roots as John Bruton, The Irish Minister for Finance, objected-when-the-statue-was-first-drafted-to-relocate-to-Australia, stating “the-monument-is representative-of -one-of-the-many-traditions-of-history. It-is-part-of-our-heritage”.

Acknowledgement of Histories

The history of the Queen Victoria monument itself is an episode into the folly of debate around history and statues – arguing against the insistence of some history being static and not to be contested. More often than not these historical pieces are relocated, swiveled, parked, stored and toppled – but importantly they should never be hidden or destroyed. Public art serves to manifest the cultural shift of ideals in visual historical forms, and although great controversy arises when placing the history of a piece under scrutiny – what should be taken away is that greater awareness of other cultural histories should be sought in public art to democratically acknowledge that many cultural voices and audiences exist within a context (Australia).