Status: Temporary Exhibit (Now Removed)
John Ayscough’s “We Walked Out Of The Wilderness” was exhibited at The Auxiliary during the fantastic Middlesbrough Art Weekender in 2021. This neon light work was inspired by an iconic photograph taken by Evening Gazette photographer Peter Reimann 32 years ago, showing then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher ‘walking into the wilderness’ on what was the site of the former Head Wrightson engineering works in Thornaby.
Ayscough describes the work as a “celebration of economic, cultural and civic achievements since then, this work is intended as reconciliation with the past. It celebrates the town’s heritage, but crucially looks forward and suggests positive change and better times ahead. The work is the beginning of something new; placing the trauma to one side, it is a beacon for our collective imagination, wellbeing and prosperity”.
North East Statues 