Follow That Hare: An Art and Nature Trail The full walk is approximately 6km and takes about 2 hours. Toilets, bus interchange, café and car parks are marked on the map. 1 Leave Warwick Arts Centre and go left along the main road. On the grassed area to your left, you will see three stone sculptures by the artist, Atsuo Okamoto: Forest Planet (2009 and 2011). Okamoto’s work explores the properties of the stone with which he works and the way it changes over time. Okamoto believes that stones hold memories and often the artist introduces sound into his sculptures. 2 Go past the Oculus building on your right-hand side. Look out for an oversized stile on the grassy area beside the Oculus building. This is a sculpture by the artist, Lucy Tomlins, called Concrete Country in Red (2018). From a distance this stile looks wooden but it is actually made of Corten steel. The work serves as both a barrier and a gateway. It is strong enough to be climbed on and can also be used as a seat. 3 As the road veers left, follow the path that drops down, signposted ‘Tocil’. When the road levels, continue walking round to the left; the building on your left-hand side is the Sports Centre. At the corner of the Sports Centre, on the circle of grass to the right of the path, you can see one of the tallest trees on the campus: a Wellingtonia. Wellingtonia are extremely fastgrowing and this tree may not be as old as you might first think. A nearby younger Wellingtonia is triangular in shape, almost like a Christmas tree. 4 As you head towards the Sports Centre car park, take the path on your right signposted ‘Cycle Route, Walk 52’. Continue on this path as it curves to the right, goes over a stream and passes a running route leading off to the right. On your right you will see Alder woodland. This occurs on damper soils beside stream courses. Alders have small black cones and, from February to April, catkins. After the Alders, take the next right, between two black fences and through a vehicle barrier. Do not follow the footpath to the right. Instead, walk between the halls of residence ahead of you. At the spiral fire escape, when the road veers to the right, take the path to the left. This will bring you out onto a field with exercise and play equipment; why not have a go? There’s a basketball hoop here too. When you’re ready, follow the path to the right that runs down the side of this field. 5 Beside the path, you will find what looks to be an abandoned lunch bag. Made by Tom Waugh, Big Takeaway (2018) has been carved in incredible detail from limestone, capturing not only the possible objects inside the bag but the folds and creases of its manufacture and the crumpling of its use. Continue on the path, bringing you past Alder woodland on your left. When you reach a set of parallel bars and the path forks, take the left fork which crosses a stream. You will then be able to see the greenhouse of the allotments in the distance. Just after the balance beam you will see the small path which leads up to the allotments; why not have a look to see what’s growing? Continue on the path, which goes across a dried-up stream and you will be at the bottom end of a lake. Continue along the path with the lake on your left-hand side.
6 To the right of the lake you will see a row of young Dawn Redwood trees. The Dawn Redwood is a living fossil that has barely changed in 150 million years and as a wild tree is confined to just a few sites in China. These trees may look like they are evergreens but are actually deciduous; their leaves drop off in autumn. 7 Looking up to your right, you may catch your first sight of Acrobats (1997, cast 2012) by Barry Flanagan. Barry Flanagan OBE (1941–2009) was a leading British artist of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. He is perhaps best known for his dynamic, often monumental, bronze hares, which were first exhibited in the early 1980s. When asked about his preoccupation with hares, Flanagan would describe the magical experience of seeing a hare running on the Sussex Downs. This event prompted his first Leaping Hare sculpture of 1979. For the Egyptians the hare represented life. In Chinese mythology the hare is the sole inhabitant of the moon and the symbol of immortality. Acrobats is almost 4.5m high; feel free to go closer for a better look. 8 At the crossroads turn right, heading up along the pavement. An avenue of young Horse Chestnut trees leads from the lakeside area to the heart of the campus. In autumn you may be able to find conkers beneath. When you see a building with a white fire escape, take a left. This will take you between two buildings; the one on your right is the student laundry. 9 Continue walking and you will see the red sculpture, 3B Series I (1968) by Bernard Schottlander. This is one of the earliest works bought for the University Art Collection. It now has grade II listed status. A German Jewish refugee, Schottlander came to the UK in 1939. He was a sculptor and designer. He originally worked as a welder. Can you see any welding in the sculpture? You can also see an example of his design in the Belgrade Theatre in Coventry city centre; Schottlander created their chandeliers. Walk away from 3B Series I, take the diagonal path to your left and go up the steps and along the pavement between two buildings. The building on your left is called Benefactors. It has a pond which sometimes contains ducks. You are now very close to the Arts Centre. If you are tired, you may choose to end your walk here or to take a break in the Arts Centre Café. If you wish to continue, at the road turn left and when you get to a main road (Gibbet Hill Road) turn left towards a roundabout. Before you reach the roundabout, cross onto the other side of the road and follow the path leading onto Leighfield Road (the third exit off the roundabout). Cross over Leighfield Road and go through a gate on the opposite side of the road. You will find yourself on the edge of a cricket pitch. Go right along the path, staying parallel with the road. 10 Look for Black Cube (2018) by Lotte Thuenker close to this path. Made from a grey-blue limestone mined in Belgium, this cube is faintly rounded in form, like a stuffed cushion or footstool. Handcarved lines run across the form, giving the appearance of fabric, so increasing the illusion of softness. How does it feel to sit on? Continue along the path until you arrive at Cryfield Sports Pavilion. Here you can find toilets and vending machines for refreshments.
11 Take a break next to Régis Chaperon’s Hare (2018). This is a model of an origami hare, carved into North African limestone. The material looks like manila brown paper. It appears as if it has been creased and folded to make a three-dimensional shape rather than carved from a solid substance. 12
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At the back of the Sports Pavilion you will find the oldest and biggest Oak on the campus. You can age Oaks by measuring the trunk girth in inches (the trunks expand by about one inch per year). The girth on this one is about 210 inches, which suggests it was planted at the end of the 18th Century or start of the 19th Century – long before the University existed.
As you join the main path, turn left. Follow the path as it winds down towards a lake. To the right of the path, by the side of the lake, is Guy Stevens’ Reclining Stone (2018). This piece makes reference to Henry Moore’s reclining sculptural figures, but on this sculpture you are invited to be the reclining figure. Why not take a seat?
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To the left of the path, can be seen Wind Sculpture (1985) by Paul Mount. Paul Mount has used the reflective properties of steel and the movement of the wind to create an artwork in constant flux. Cross over the lake at the first bridge you meet on the right and then follow the path to the right, which curves around the back of a nursery. When you meet a main road, turn right and head down towards the roundabout. At the roundabout, take a right and walk along the road. The building on your right-hand side is Warwick Business School.
As you walk round the Sports Pavilion, look up under the eaves of the roof and you will see Swallows’ nests. These birds spend the winter in Africa, flying back to their nesting areas here in April and May. 14 Head back the way you came to Leighfield Road, turn left and continue up the road. On the right-hand side of Leighfield Road, just outside the entrance to Cryfield Old Farmhouse, you will see a Ginkgo tree. Cross over the road safely and have a look. TThe Ginkgo is a unique tree, so primitive that it reproduces in a similar manner to ferns and mosses with a type of swimming pollen. It is another living fossil that has barely changed in over 200 million years and in the wild is confined to just a few places in China. Continue walking up Leighfield Road away from the Ginkgo. On your right you will see a signpost for Windmill Hill and a gate with a stile. Go over the stile or, if open, through the gate. Go straight ahead. Across the field to your left, you can see the University of Warwick’s new Sports Centre in the distance. 15 Here you can see Sessile Oak trees. The Sessile Oak was probably the main oak of Warwickshire before ancient farmers started to clear the forest some 5000 years ago. If you can find any acorns, notice how they lack the stalk seen in English Oak. But if you can find some fallen leaves you will notice that they have a long stalk, unlike English Oak. 16 Near to the water are Elm trees. Huge Elm trees once dominated the Warwickshire countryside, resulting in the term ‘leafy Warwickshire’. Sadly Dutch Elm Disease (caused by a fungus transported by bark beetles) has killed most of the old Elm trees in England. But the roots survive and new trees can grow for about 20–30 years before they succumb to the disease. These ones are just reaching that age and some have recently died. 17 Further along on your left, by a clump of trees, you will find Song Version V (2018) by Jon Isherwood. This work is made of granite but has the sense of a soft bag, its fluid contents pushing out the base while the neck is pulled upwards and tied. The different widths of the stripes are like prints made in the 1960s that aimed to make the viewer think lines were moving forwards and backwards. The artist has used digital cutting technology to create two different effects in the stone: polished black and unpolished pale grey.
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20 On the left-hand side of the road you will see the colourful sculpture Needle of Knowledge Obelisk (1993–4) by Stefan Knapp. Cross over carefully and have a closer look. This sculpture is made of enamel on steel. Knapp spent many years researching and developing techniques for using enamel on steel and using them on a grand scale. He created the largest public mural in the world for the side of a department store in New Jersey, America. The mural included 280 panels and weighed 250 tonnes. 21 Continue along the main road in the same direction. Close to the road, on the right hand side, just before you reach the Bus Interchange, you will find Holly and Ivy: two plants strongly associated with Christmas, which feature in an old favourite carol. Can you remember the words? 22 Beside the taxi rank, you will see the sculpture of an anxiously pacing cat. This is Days of Judgement, Cat 1 (2012) by Laura Ford. Originally one of a series of seven, the poses of the cats were inspired by the figures of Adam and Eve in a fresco by the Renaissance artist Masaccio called The Expulsion from the Garden of Eden (1427). 23 Ahead you can see Richard Deacon’s Let’s Not be Stupid (1991). This was Richard Deacon’s first commission for a largescale, outdoor, permanent work. The sculpture works as a huge drawing in space. Walking around it, different shapes appear to contract and expand, changing from single black lines to rippling and smooth vessel shapes. The two forms appear to be in balance – it is ambiguous whether the larger form is pushing or pulling the smaller caged form and this adds to the sense of movement in the sculpture as does the twisting ladder form that connects them. On your left is Warwick Arts Centre: your starting point. In the Arts Centre is a café as well as toilets and areas to sit and relax. We hope you enjoyed your walk.
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Follow that Hare: An Art and Nature Trail is a new trail across the University of Warwick campus. The trail is centred around the 1997 sculpture, Acrobats, by Barry Flanagan, which is on loan to the University for one year only (Sep 2018–Aug 2019). The trail incorporates several permanent sculptures from the University of Warwick Art Collection.
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For details of the full collection, including locations, go to: www2.warwick.ac.uk/services/art
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For more information about visual arts on campus and beyond, go to www.warwickartscentre.co.uk/mead-gallery
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Use this map to mark locations for plants and animals (flora and fauna) you spot along the route. This map may be used in conjunction with the Follow that Hare Field Guide, which provides lots of children’s activities relating to the trail as well as room to draw. You may also be interested in borrowing an Explorer backpack, which contains field guides, binoculars, drawing materials and much, much, more. For details visit meadgallery.co.uk
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Illustrations by Helen Cann helencann.co.uk Nature trail created by Steven Falk stevenfalk.co.uk Loan of Barry Flanagan: Acrobats (1997, cast 2012) courtesy Waddington Custot and the Barry Flanagan Estate