Anti-war artwork erected outside Winchester Cathedral ‘looks like a crime scene’ and would be better off shown at the council tip, city dwellers say

An anti-war exhibition that has been erected outside a historic cathedral has been slammed by city dwellers after saying it ‘looks like a crime scene’. 

Locals have been left unimpressed by the ‘This is not a Minefield’ display, which features a white sheet of decorated with red tape and images of a skull and bones, on the green outside Winchester Cathedral, in Hampshire. 

The piece, made in collaboration with the Mines Advisory Group (MAG), was created by artist Ian Golding and is meant to make people question what it would be like to live somewhere impacted by war. 

Mr Golding said he hopes the piece will ‘ask questions about the impact of the industrial military complex upon our world’ and ‘provoke a response’ from people. 

However, the public reaction is probably not quite what the artist envisioned, with some mistaking it for a crime scene, while others joked it would be better off shown at the council tip. 

An anti-war exhibition that has been erected outside Winchester Cathedral. It has been slammed by city dwellers after saying it ‘looks like a crime scene’

The ‘This is not a Minefield’ display features a white sheet of decorated with red tape and images of a skull and bones

The piece (circled red) was created by artist Ian Golding and is on show on the green outside the cathedral of Winchester, Hampshire

Mr Golding said: ‘As an artist I am interested in using my practice to ask questions about the world we have created, whether about climate change, political instability, the precarity of resources or the impact of warfare on humanity.

‘Prompted by an interest in my adopted son’s homeland, I started to research the impact that we in the West have had upon Afghanistan.

‘Two salutary facts struck me immediately – since 1989, about 56,923 Afghan civilians have been recorded to have been killed or injured by landmines and explosive remnants of war (ERW) averaging to around 110 people per month.

‘In 2021, more than 79 percent of the ERW casualties were children.’

The artwork is coupled with a placard on a noticeboard including a poem by writer Brian Draper and the testimony of Soran Kareem, a 37 year old farmer who found himself close to death when becoming trapped inside a minefield. 

He continued: ‘In September I embarked upon a collaboration with the Mines Advisory Group (MAG), effectively operating as an artist in residence.

‘I have been exploring all aspects of their work, researching archive material, talking to experts in the field and visiting a humanitarian de-mining operation in Bosnia.

‘My intention is to use art to ask questions about the impact of the industrial military complex upon our world.

‘I believe that art can be a force for good, challenging our preconceptions and provoking a response.’

The ‘This is not a Minefield’ display, which has left locals in Winchester unimpressed 

People have called the display ‘awful’ and ‘an insult to art’, while others joked it would be better off shown at the council tip.

The display (circled red) is on display on the green outside the cathedral of Winchester until April 25 this year

However, locals are not impressed with the display and have called it ‘awful’ and ‘an insult to art’.

Kevin Elkins said: ‘For a moment, I thought it was a crime scene’, whilst another resident added: ‘I mean.. it is low effort, borderline no effort.’

One anonymous admirer commented: ‘This is not an artwork’ more like. I really don’t know how these talentless individuals get away with it.’

Lyn Brockway branded it: ‘An insult to art’, while Alan Price said: ‘Not a bad place to show it the council tip would be better.’

Others were more complimentary with former primary school teacher Nicci Roberts describing it as ‘Mesmerising’.