Some public art in Farnham

The Lion and Lamb

Lion and Lamb Yard is named after the 19th century hotel which used to occupy the West Street frontage.  When the new shopping courtyard was opened in 1985, the iconic sculpture of the Lion and Lamb by Edwin Russell was commissioned by the developers.  It is much loved by children who enjoy climbing over its smooth wooden surface.

Post Office Mural

When the new Post Office building in West Street was opened in 1970, Michael Fairclough, lecturer at the art college, won a competition for a mural design.  Entitled “Farnham and the way it sits in hills and valleys” it is an abstract representation of the topography of the Farnham area. 

Matriarch

The semi-abstract sculpture by Ben Franklin was placed in a quiet little courtyard, part of the Borelli Yard complex off The Borough, shortly after the artist’s death in 1986, while the present day courtyard was being constructed.  It expresses the inner peace, serenity and tranquillity that flowed from the artist’s spiritual beliefs.

William Cobbett Bust

The bust of William Cobbett by Willi Soukop was commissioned by the Farnham Society in the late 1940s and placed on a plinth by the river in Gostrey Meadow near the Longbridge.  It was stolen and lost for many years before being discovered in a culvert at Coxbridge.  It  is now in the garden of Farnham Museum.

Outdoor Bathing

Otherwise known as “The Shivering Boy” this sculpture by Jane Jones was installed in 1997 when the Victoria Garden off South Street was opened on the site of the town’s first open air swimming bath.  It was commissioned by the Rotary Club of Farnham to mark their 75th anniversary. 

Millennium Child

This charming little terracotta wall plaque and planter is placed at the junction of Upper Church Lane and Downing Street.  It is by the potter Sue Broadhead, commissioned to mark the millennium by Madge Green who led the voluntary Farnham in Bloom committee which preceded the present Farnham in Bloom, now run by Farnham Town Council. 

Relief Panels on Hawthorn Lodge

When Farnham Police Station was built on this site off Longbridge in 1961 a competition was held for the design of these three carved panels.  The winners were two students from the Wimbledon College of Art, Rachel Brown and Carole Hodgson.  Two of the panels illustrate sources of the town’s wealth, wool and hops, and the third shows a bishop with deer in Farnham Park, recalling the Bishops of Winchester at Farnham Castle.  When Hawthorn Lodge replaced the police station in 2015, the developers Churchill Homes preserved the panels and placed them in their present position on the new building. 

Celebrating the Oak Tree

The two oak tree sculptures by David Mayne mounted on pillars on the forecourt of the New Ashgate Gallery in the Wagon Yard recall the importance of the oak to Farnham people throughout the ages.  Harvested from the ancient oak forests which surrounded the town, for building and construction, shipbuilding, and as a fuel, the oak was an indispensable element in people’s lives.

A Fishy Tale

“A Fishy Tale – Another Brick in the Wall” is a new creation sponsored by Farnham Town Council and placed in the Evelyn Borelli sculpture garden next to the University of the Creative Arts foyer entrance.  Unveiled in October 2021 it is a whole-community art installation led by Keppel Knowson of “Making Matters”, built from bricks designed and created by the public.  Around 300 members of the public participated and the bricks were fired by West Street Potters at the Farnham Pottery.  It is an intricate piece picking up on Farnham’s historic pottery industry.