Room for the clock to return?

[Gayle]

The Panopticon public art project had goals - put public art on hills where you can see great panorama views of the towns and to encourage walking.

I'll qualify my original statement a little further - In terms of the Panopticon project, the clock can not be defined as a Panopticon.

People have found the word panopticon in dictionaries to describe a prison and yes, we are aware of that definition but it is not the only definition of the word - lots of words have two meanings or their meaning has changed over the years.

The definition of Panopticon as we have used it is as follows

Panopticon n. Structure, space or device providing a comprehensive or panoramic view.

Also, I would disagree with you about the Blackburn one - it is on an elevated place which does give comprehensive and panoramic views of the town - admittedly the council could do with cutting a few of the trees back to give a better view but they haven't got round to that yet.

[WillowTheWhisp]

So there was never any hope of having something anywhere else othr than up the Coppice in this Panopticon scheme was there? Evene when some of us said we wouldn't have minded one elswhere we hadn't a snowball in Hell's chance?

[WillowTheWhisp]

Originally Posted by Gayle

Panopticon n. Structure, space or device providing a comprehensive or panoramic view.

Hang on a mo, even by that definition a statue on top of a hill isn't a panopticon. The hill already provides the comprehensive panoramic view, an additional structure on top of it does not.

[Gayle]

Originally Posted by WillowTheWhisp

So there was never any hope of having something anywhere else othr than up the Coppice in this Panopticon scheme was there? Evene when some of us said we wouldn't have minded one elswhere we hadn't a snowball in Hell's chance?

Not sure how you get that - there are lots of other hills around Hyndburn overlooking Accrington or the other towns.

[Gayle]

Originally Posted by WillowTheWhisp

Hang on a mo, even by that definition a statue on top of a hill isn't a panopticon. The hill already provides the comprehensive panoramic view, an additional structure on top of it does not.

A statue on top of a hill is not a panopticon because at no point were the panopticons ever statues on top of hills. The Panopticons are structures providing panoramic views, I think that the definition is fairly clear and accurate.

[yerself]

Originally Posted by lyndsay ormerod

The clock was an absolute eyesore and made the worst din imaginable when it "chimed".

Hear hear. Let's hope it's rusted beyond all hope of repair and its only remaining value is that of scrap metal.

[WillowTheWhisp]

I apologise. I should have said 'structure', or perhaps 'creation' rather than statue. It was a bad choice of words. I don't want to sound like I'm arguing here but now I'm getting more curious and confused because how would High Form have fit that definition. How would it have provided a view which was an improvement on the view we already have from the top of the Coppice?

Were any other hills or high points ever acceptable to the would be panopticon creators?

[Gayle]

Originally Posted by WillowTheWhisp

I apologise. I should have said 'structure', or perhaps 'creation' rather than statue. It was a bad choice of words. I don't want to sound like I'm arguing here but now I'm getting more curious and confused because how would High Form have fit that definition. How would it have provided a view which was an improvement on the view we already have from the top of the Coppice?

Were any other hills or high points ever acceptable to the would be panopticon creators?

High Form was a structure. It was going to be placed on the top of a hill. If you were to visit the structure, i.e. stand in it you would have got panoramic views of the area and town.

At no point was the phrase 'improve the view' used - it was to encourage people to use the view, to encourage people to actually walk up the hill and to see the town.

Other hills and high points were visited and discussed. The creator of the design was willing to look at lots of different sites and we took many walks around the hills around Huncoat, Gt Harwood and Oswaldtwistle.

[shillelagh]

I went down town today and walking through the Arndale saw the benches and wondered where the cafe had gone to. For a change instead of having to walk round it to go into wh smiths i could walk straight through. I hope they bring the clock back i used to like watching the clock it was different. It was an eye opener and i know people who used to come from all over to have a look at the clock - even my relatives from ireland when i took them down accy stopped and watched it - theyd never seen anything like that before.

[WillowTheWhisp]

I'd certainly love to see the clock back in full working order and back where it was created to be too. I had friends from New Zealand come into town wanting to see it when it was there!

[katex]

Originally Posted by WillowTheWhisp

I'd certainly love to see the clock back in full working order and back where it was created to be too. I had friends from New Zealand come into town wanting to see it when it was there!

Here, here Willow and Shillelagh ... I thought was great too . gave us a sort of special feature whether you liked the design or not.

Remind me... why did they remove it in the first place ?

[WillowTheWhisp]

It stopped working - that may have been conveneint if it was seen as a good idea to have a cafe there instead of it.

[katex]

Originally Posted by WillowTheWhisp

It stopped working - that may have been conveneint if it was seen as a good idea to have a cafe there instead of it.

Well, suppose financial sense in a way to have a paying client in the space, rather than paying out for a clock to repair, however,sure did bring shoppers in, and we have to have some sort of 'fun' spending on our council taxes at times .. can't always be serious stuff, can it ? There has to be money spent on a feel good factor too.

[junetta]

I hope it returns. I only saw it a couple of times but remember the huge crowd and all the little kids staring upwards and waiting.

The usual thing, if it's good, lets get rid of it.

[jimmi5bellies]

They probably got rid of it when they realised how much electric it cost to run it and was probably always arguing who put the next £ in the meter to keep it going