Remembering Together: Covid memorial will pay tribute to lives lost and strength of communities in difficult times

Falkirk Council along with other local authorities across the country is taking part in the Scottish Government’s Remembering Together initiative which, as well as remembering those who died, will celebrate

the ways in which communities have come together during the most difficult times.

Artists will work with communities along with support from local organisations and greenspace scotland. The commissioned artists will collaborate with people in the community to define what memorial means for that specific place.

Working on the Falkirk project will be Caspar J. Wilson of Studio Caspar. A community artist with many years experience delivering socially engaging projects across Scotland.

In 2019 he worked with Falkirk Council and Paths for All as part of NADFLY to make waymarkers as part of the Take the Right Route initiative. Made of carved granite with symbols from an imaginative landscape they are strategically placed across Maddiston to promote walking and cycling.

The first phase of the project will last around six months with Caspar working with local communities “to explore and shape ideas for a creative output that reflects local people’s experiences of the pandemic”.

The second phase will see the design for the memorial, followed by its delivery.

Caspar said: “As a community artist who has experienced loss due to Covid-19, the themes of Remembering Together are personal for me, as they are for so many in the area.

"I look forward to listening, learning and working together with people of every background to bring forward a collective vision for a memorial in Falkirk.”

Leader of Falkirk Council, Councillor Cecil Meiklejohn said “Covid-19 affected every community across the Falkirk area and this national project will allow us to honour the memory of those we have lost and be a focus for remembrance for the people of the Falkirk area.”

A spokesperson for the council said: “There is no fixed idea, concept or location at this time as the memorial will be the result of a process of co-creation between artist and communities. We anticipate a creative outcome that helps to translate personal experiences of Covid-19 into something that holds meaning for a whole community.”