16 Comments

• At 2009.07.15 09:04, Steve Lancaster said:
  

  I love the shoe tree.

  Jarvis Cocker has written and presented about ‘outsider art’ - art that doesn’t tick the art industry boxes. To me, this is a perfect example.

  A little bit of re-enchantment in the heart of Newcastle. Does far, far more than it says on the tin.

  Went to see the shoe-tree early this year, to find it had become a glade.

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.15 22:31, Dave said:
  

  Well, whatever floats your boat ;)

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.15 23:08, mrs K said:
  

  Well it certainly does not ‘float my boat.

  Trees are living and breathing and contribute much to earth. Human beings need to learn we are all part of earth and not superior to any part of it - just equal and we should respect it.

  How do you think the tree feels with alien objects dangling on it - heavy objects as well, not as light as their leaves.

  How would a human feel if the tree wrapped its trunk over their shoulders and they were made to carry the weight.

  Art, never. Vandalism - yes.

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.16 10:56, Dave said:
  

  Nor mine Mrs K - well done.

  I love trees; not sure if they ‘have feelings’, but if they do they won’t be happy!

  But I certainly agree that this doesn’t constitute ‘Art’. If it does, there are some fine examples of similar Art across the region, i.e. trees with bin liners ardorning them etc.

  Of course I know that the artist involved here would wish to provoke a reaction, and that the provocation itself is viewed as Art.

  Not for me though.

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.16 14:55, Steve Lancaster said:
  

  Hey, each to their own! I hate the way the fields between Benton and West Monkseaton have steadily filled up with houses. Not too keen on wooden tables either (I made that last bit up).

  But a thought on grafitti and whether it can ever be considered art (a debate my wife and I have often!). If one generation puts up a dirty great concrete motorway bridge/ wall/ factory, does it have to remain grey and ugly for decades afterwards? Some grafitti’s intimidating, I know, but so are dimly-lit underpasses built by councils who don’t wish to spend money. One generation’s power can frequently become the next generation’s disempowerment, don’t you think?

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.16 22:33, mrs K said:
  

  Some of the best graffitti/art I have ever seen was on dirty great concrete. Concrete/bland factory walls/corrugated iron - no problem -cover them with rainbow colours. Just hands off trees and living things and the best bit of graffitti I have ever seen. On the side of what used to be County Hall, London.

  ‘Dyslexia rules KO’.

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.16 23:13, Beth said:
  

  OK I’d never heard anyone express anything but positive views on the shoe tree before this thread. I need to reconsider.

  Does anyone know where the shoes really did come from? Apparently (according to Cassandra when we met up last year and she took me there) the rumour is that it’s a tradition for students to throw their shoes into the trees for luck. I never dreamed that it could be a deliberate art thing. I also read The Taxi Driver’s Daughter by Julia Darling, in which was one possible interpretation of why the shoes are there, which breaks my heart - and that makes me reluctant to see them as anything but a positive.

  I felt it to be quite magical when I was there last summer.

  I don’t want it to be something that An Artist started. I want it to be more organic than that.

  And Mrs K, the best bit of graffiti I ever saw is on a wall near York University. It reads ‘RE(F)USE’
  Re-FUSE - re-use - RE-fuse - I used to walk past it on my way to work and home again and I would consider it every time. I chose to read it as a plea for recycling - but it was the questions it raised in my head that made it work for me.

  I have a pic somewhere, but I can’t be posting York pictures! If I post it elsewhere I’ll mention it here.

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.17 14:54, Chris said:
  

  Where exactly is the shoe tree?

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.17 20:23, Dave said:
  

  No worries at all Steve - each to their own mate as you say.

  Hi Beth, I’d never heard of the Shoe Tree, let alone seen it, before this post. But it’s right that it was posted, as it has sparked a debate. So I don’t know if it’s deliberate Art or a student tradition etc. Then you mention the book you read - so I’m even more intrigued! If you find out more about all this, let me know!

  Mrs K I agree with what you say about graffiti - I use the Metro a lot, and when it’s on lifeless concrete structures it looks good. In fact, they sometimes remove the graffiti from things and they look worse for it!

  Peace to all, Dave

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.17 21:21, Beth said:
  

  Chris -look here and there are directions.

  For information on The Taxi Driver’s Daughter by Julia Darling click here or here. If you do read it, please do come back and let me know what you think.

  Dave - the debate is the thing, you’re right. I really do love this site :)

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.18 09:20, Dave said:
  

  Cheers for the links Beth, will take a look!

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.22 17:47, Steve Lancaster said:
  

  Dave, Mrs K,

  Bit grumpy when I posted - thanks for bearing with me. I agree: here the debate’s the thing.

  Like Beth I’d never thought of the Shoe Tree negatively. To me it seems eerie. I guess trees don’t expect to be garlanded by trainers, but they do cope with creepers and other trees fallen on them!

  To me, it’s about the intention with which the shoes were thrown in the first place. I don’t actually think it was a planned and executed work of ‘Art’ (capital letter, snotty voice). But I do think that the chills I get down my spine when I walk through the glade give me pause for thought, the way art can do. I suspect the work ‘emerged’ over time - and is being added to still. It’s greater than the sum of its parts, and the intentions of any single individual.

  There’s a wall down a side alley in town that is covered in chalk messages. Periodically the council scrubs them. That’s worth looking for - it’s down from the old Odeon cinema, beyond the police station, that side of the road.

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.22 19:35, Dave said:
  

  Steve mate, you weren’t grumpy at all.

  I hadn’t even heard of The Shoe Tree, so I need to take a look - I am intrigued now! I need to look for this place, and I will also definitely hunt out the alley you describe.

  As I said it was definitely correct to feature the Shoe Tree on here, and the commenting is all good.

  Cheers, Dave.

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.22 19:36, Dave said:
  

  ,,,and you mention the old Odeon - anyone know what’s going to happen to the place?

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.22 22:59, Beth said:
  

  Thanks for this Steve and Dave. I’ll be looking out for that alley too.

  Dave, no idea. I suspect there are no concrete plans for it yet. I think it’s a shame.

  [Reply]
• At 2009.07.22 23:17, Cassandra said:
  

  Steve & Beth - both Chris and I have posted the chalk wall:

  Mine: June 18, 2008 - chalk road - http://newcastleupontynedailyphoto.com/index.php/2008/06/18/chalk-road/

  Chris’s: October 31, 2006 - Chalk wall - http://newcastleupontynedailyphoto.com/index.php/2006/10/31/chalk-wall/

  [Reply]