Competition to create sculpture as monument to Magna Carta

A new sculpture will be created as a lasting testament to this year’s 800th anniversary celebrations of Magna Carta – with students now being set the challenge of designing the monument.

The University of Lincoln, UK, has been awarded a grant of £4,500 from the Magna Carta Trust’s 800th Anniversary Commemoration Committee to create a sculpture to stand in perpetuity as a piece of public art on its main Brayford Pool Campus.

The city of Lincoln possesses one of only four remaining originals of the 1215 Magna Carta – the document which enshrined the rule of law in England and provided the foundation for democracies around the world.

Having declared 2015 its Year of Liberty, the University of Lincoln has partnered with local, national and international organisations in a range of educational activities which encourage young people to reflect on the meaning of Magna Carta and its significance 800 years on.

Under its new “Magna Carta – Knowledge is freedom, ignorance is slavery” project, a competition has been launched for the University’s staff and students to create designs for a sculpture which will serve as a lasting testament to Magna Carta, liberty and the celebrations of 2015. It will incorporate a couplet from a new poem by Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy, who will be a member of the judging panel which selects the winning design. Pupils at primary and secondary schools across the UK can also apply their artistic talents in a parallel competition to create artwork which commemorates the Magna Carta anniversary. Shortlisted entries will be curated in an exhibition to be hosted at the University of Lincoln next summer and featured in the Lincolnshire Echo newspaper. Winners in two age categories will also receive a £50 Amazon voucher.

Professor Scott Davidson, Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the University of Lincoln said: “Magna Carta has endured for 800 years and this year’s anniversary is a watershed moment where we can not only reflect on the past, but also look ahead. This competition is an opportunity for young people to create a lasting testimony to Magna Carta in a way that enables future generations to gain a sense of the scale and significance of the anniversary celebrations of 2015.”

The closing date for entries in both the sculpture and school art competitions is 30th December 2015. Full terms and conditions on the school art competition can be found at: www.lincoln.ac.uk/magnacarta/create/ The Magna Carta Trust’s 800th Anniversary Commemoration Committee is charged by the Magna Carta Trust to co-ordinate activities, raise the profile of the anniversary and deliver a number of key national and international aspirations. For more information, visit www.magnacarta800th.com