Hereford FC supporters on their way to Rocester may have noticed a sculpture by one of the JCB sites.
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| The JCB Sculpture |
It was crafted by a man living in Herefordshire, the same person who was responsible for the Bulmers Woodpecker sculpture which can be seen near Sainsburys.
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| The Woodpecker Sculpture |
Hereford FC supporter Joyce Powell explains.
I guess everyone in Herefordshire has seen the famous 20'high Bulmer
Woodpecker sculpture in steel, near the entrance to Sainsbury, which was
unveiled by Peter Scott in 1969, but then standing the opposite side of
the road. It was sculpted by a Herefordshire man named Walenty Pytel
who then lived at Letton.
Not only that, but how many know that the also
famous abstract steel art-work, which those ardent HFC followers would
have passed by yesterday on the way to Rocester, was the work of the
same man? The directors of JCB commissioned Pytel to make something
large to stand in their landscaped grounds. At 40' high it was the
largest of its kind in Europe. It's octopus-like, with arms and buckets
stretching out in all directions.
Pytel worked originally in grafic design, which he studied at our own Hereford College of Art, before leaving for the Big City.
Finding the production of book illustrations boring and missing his
beautiful Herefordshire countryside he returned and initially taught at
the place that taught him. He experimented in different metals, and soon
took a brave step and went free lance. He bought a second hand welder for
£30 and in a small shed in Woolhope began a life of highly original work
in steel. His works can be seen all over the world..commissions were
being accepted from public bodies. The demands for his works just grew
as did the size of sculptures required for outdoor spaces.
IF we have to
travel that way again, pause and be proud....a large piece of
Herefordshire in Rocester!!