A vast new art trail could soon link up all 32 London boroughs

A motion to whack a new public artwork in every London borough is set to be debated at the London Assembly this coming Thursday (November 7). The proposal would see each of London’s 32 boroughs commission a new sculpture or installation by a local artist, school or youth club that would form a vast, capital-spanning art trail.

The whole thing is former Tory mayoral candidate Lord Bailey’s idea. He reckons the project would ‘encourage local tourism and bolster economic growth in outer London’. The hope is that the art trail would help de-zone-1-ify London’s cultural offerings by bringing some cultural attention to the outer boroughs. 

If the motion gets passed, it goes straight the top: Sadiq Khan. He is, however, under no obligation to give it his approval.

London does of course already have art trails. There’s Sculpture in the City, which sees new sculptures by contemporary artists dotted around the Square Mile every year; there’s The Line, a permanent sculpture trail from Stratford to Greenwich with works by people like Antony Gormley; there’s Frieze Sculpture, which puts on a new display of big outdoor sculptures in Regent’s Park every Autumn; and then there’s stuff like Mayfair Art Weekend, or Haringey's recent owl infestation.

But hey, you can’t have too many art trails, as the old saying goes. 

Want more art? Here, have the top 10 art exhibitions in London.