Famous Reading sculpture returns after four year gap
Cartwheeling boys was damaged in a storm in 2022
A public artwork called Cartwheeling boys has gone back on display in Reading after a long absence.
It’s three years and seven days since the sculpture was last seen in public, after the hurricane-force winds of Storm Eunice toppled the wall it was set upon in February 2022.
There was a determination to repair the sculpture and find it a new home, so it was carefully retrieved, with all parts were kept in storage.
The sculpture was a gift from Reading’s twin town of Düsseldorf, Germany, to mark the 30th anniversary of the link between the two. It symbolises the tradition of children performing cartwheels as a sign of joy and celebration.
The sculpture was installed on a purpose-built wall in 1981 opposite the entrance to the then council offices, near The Hexagon theatre on San Francisco Libre Walk, with sculptor Brian Slack in attendance. The council offices closed in 2015 and moved to Bridge Street.
In 2023, the Council received funding to redevelop the Bridge Street council offices, create a bespoke Central Library, and improve the customer reception area. Plans were set in motion to add a sculpture to the exterior of the building.
Modern techniques of computer modelling were combined with traditional sculpting to repair the sculpture, restoring it to near original state.
It will now stand proudly on the Civic Centre at the corner of Bridge Street and Fobney Street.
Symbol
Councillor Liz Terry, Leader of the Council, said: “What better way to mark a project like redeveloping the Civic Centre and creating a new Central Library than incorporating a symbol of Reading’s history.
“The then Mayor of Reading, Councillor Phoebe Cusden, cultivated links with Germany in 1947, and they are still strong today.
“Thank you to everyone who has been involved in keeping the sculpture safe since that terrible storm, those who have worked innovatively to recreate the parts that could not be salvaged, and the team delivering the civic redevelopment.
“The Reading Düsseldorf Association has also funded the information board, which will tell people the history of the sculpture and how it came to be at the Civic Centre.
“I am so pleased to see the Cartwheeling Boys back up on display in Reading, where they deserve to be.”
The new Central Library is set to open this summer and will be accessed through the redesigned reception that opened a month ago. There will be a rededication of the sculpture later in the year.