Donations urgently needed to restore ‘Leaning Woman’ sculpture
A council is urgently raising funds to restore one of the borough’s most intriguing sculptures.
Hammersmith residents have already pledged £5,500 in donations and the council has given £20,000 towards the restoration of the Leaning Woman statue – located alongside the Great West Road near St Peter’s Church in Hammersmith.
A further £11,000 has also been contributed by the charity Heritage of London Trust, which initiated the restoration project.
But the council has announced that donations are still needed to preserve the gravity-defying structure.
Created by sculptor Karel Vogel, who arrived in Britain from Prague in 1938 after fleeing the Nazis shortly before the Second World War, the sculpture is of a half-nude classical Greek woman.
The piece was commissioned by the old London County Council in 1958 to fill an area of leftover land alongside the A4. The council said it was meant to have a calming influence on motorists using a stretch of road that was the first multiple carriageway in the UK.
Councillor Sharon Holder, Hammersmith and Fulham cabinet member for public realm, said: “This is such a worthwhile restoration.
“We still need help to preserve this Grade ll-listed artwork for future generations to enjoy.”
The council has said its funding will come from the community infrastructure levy – the fund property developers pay into to support new building projects in the borough.
Pictured top: The Leaning Woman Sculpture in Hammersmith (Picture: Hammersmith and Fulham council)
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