In London next year? Look out for a cute meerkat family looking out over Trafalgar Square. Or maybe a member of your own family, high up on a plinth, risking vertigo in the name of art.
While the square's other sculpture plinths host traditional British establishment figures - with Horatio, Lord Nelson centre-stage atop his Column - the Fourth Plinth has a reputation for being a more radical space. It was empty for years until a London art scheme invited sculptors to propose a contemporary work for temporary display. The choice is invariably controversial, as with the current installation, Thomas Schuette's multi-colored "Model for a Hotel 2007" and Marc Quinn's earlier sculpture of Alison Lapper.
Now the gloves are off again, as the new shortlist has just gone on show to the public. Two works propose making use of Britain's weather. Anish Kapoor's "Sky Plinth" (right) cantilevers five concave mirrors to reflect the clouds. While Bob and Roberta Smith (that's one artist, and he's called Patrick) offers "Faîtes L'Art, pas La
Guerre (Make Art, Not War)", a wind and solar-powered illuminated sign.
Yinka Shonibare references Nelson with a model of the admiral's ship in a bottle, while Anthony Gormley sees a place in the square for everyman. His "One and Other" is a plinth occupied by a succession of real people, one volunteer an hour, 24/7, over a whole year- that's 8,760 possible human statues.
A model car - burnt-out with lighter fuel - is standing for Jeremy Deller's idea, a plinth topped by a car shipped back from war-torn Iraq as a memorial to an unknown civilian. Tracey Emin's meerkats also have a deeper message. The group of vigilant animals was inspired by national security, and coincidence. As she told BBC News:"Whenever Britain is in crisis or, as a nation, is experiencing sadness and loss (for example, after Princess Diana's funeral), the next program on television is Meerkats United".
