Today, the aptly named ‘Oor Artifacts’ Wullie – part of the hugely successful bucket trail - was welcomed to his new home at The McManus: Dundee’s Art Gallery & Museum. Leisure & Culture Dundee were successful in their bid for the statue at the recent auction for the ARCHIE Foundation and decided to put him on show in one of the city’s favourite buildings for everyone to enjoy.
‘Oor Artifacts’ was designed by Andy MacVicar who is a Scottish sculptor with a Masters of Fine Art from Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design. A traditionally trained bronze foundryman for a leading Scottish fine art foundry, his work has been exhibited internationally.
The statue was inspired by an imagined Oor Wullie comic strip, in which Oor Wullie visits the renovated McManus Gallery. Wullie was impressed with the braw collection of weird and wonderful objects from across the globe, that had somehow all ended up in Dundee. He especially liked the mba mask from Africa, which was used in okumkpa – an African dance noted for its humorous qualities. It was believed that putting on the mask transformed the performer into a spirit, so Wullie thought he’d hae a go at that.
Billy Gartley, Head of Cultural Services at Leisure & Culture Dundee said
“It seems fitting that we now have ‘Oor Artifacts’ in place in The McManus as a reminder of what a phenomenon the trail has been. Appropriately, the inspiration for ‘Oor Artifacts’ came from Wullie’s visit to the museum, so there is no better place for him to be. The total amount raised for the ARCHIE foundation has been really incredible and we have been delighted to have been a part of the project from start to finish.”
Oor Artifacts will initially be on show in the Dundee and the World Gallery at The McManus until May next year.
