“Maman” by Louise Bourgeois Photo copyright: Mark Adams
I was intrigued by zoologist Dr. Tim Cockerill’s BBC4 “Spider House” programme last week, whose purpose it is to correct the bad press spiders tend to get. He is an excellent presenter and I didn’t know that he’s a local – from Sutton, east Hull.
Dr. Tim Cockerill
The programme is very timely, as I always get several huge house spiders scuttling around the borders of the room this time of year. Not large enough to cast shadows though! Now I know they’re shopping for a male to further the species and also provide a post-coital supper.
It brings to mind the more than 10 meter, eye-catching spider that sits in front of the Tate Modern suitably named “Maman”; the work of French-born artist Louise Bourgeois.
There’s a second giant spider in Liverpool, this time called “La Princesse”, created by another French artist François Delarozière, commissioned to inaugurate their year as cultural capital in September 2008.
La Princesse by Delarozière
Photo copyright: Matthew Andrews
That one is 15 meters high, weighs 37 tonnes and is made from reclaimed steel and poplar wood.
It’s interesting to see how arachnids capture the imagination, usually in some form of anxiety. As Dr. Tim Cockerill points out, they are neither monstrous nor scary.
Which leads me to my next thought, I wonder what Hull has in mind to mark its City of Culture year in 2017. Perhaps Hull’s very own zoologist, Dr. Tim can advise them!
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