MAETHEREA, IRON REEF, NORFOLK, ANGLETERRE
The London-based multidisciplinary firm Maetherea, founded in 2018 by Cristina Morbi, has created Iron Reef along the banks of the River Yare in England, a site-specific observation device that is part of the Norfolk Way Art Trail, a public art path stretching 250 miles across the county of Norfolk.
Iron Reef is an amphibious structure that can operate both on land and in water. Cyclically submerged by winter tides, it re-emerges among the beds of reed as a striking landmark, changing its appearance at different times of year and creating constantly changing, reflective patterns. Its curved, lightweight, metal structure soars up into the sky, bending in the wind to create different perspectives along the waterway and across the horizon. Its vertical elements are made of steel rods that connect with the natural environment to evoke the reeds gently swaying on the horizon, while at the same time referencing the metallic mechanisms of Reedham Ferry and its rusty surfaces.
River tides alter the material, adding patinas and oxidations like some sort of chromatic performance. Norfolk Way Art Trail is promoted by EXPERIENCE, a project co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund and led by Norfolk County Council. The project is aimed at generating innovative and sustainable growth through a new tourist strategy.
Client: Norfolk County Council; Project Leadership and Artistic Direction: Cristina Morbi (Maetherea); Collaborators: Aurora Destro (Project
Management), Cristina Brena (Assistant);
Fabrication & Installation:
Other People’s Sculpture; Engineering:
Pierce & Myers; Partners:
Broadland District Council, Reedham Parish Council; Client’s Agent: Creative Giants; Stakeholders: Reedham Ferry Inn + Campsite, Archer Family, Broads
Authority; Community Engagement:
Artist Liz McGowan. Photo: Maetherea Cristina Morbi, Kristina Chan
