Edinburgh is a city of hills and stairs, and The Scotsman Steps are part of the city’s history, connecting the new town with the old town, and have long been considered a road as much as a staircase. As with most sites of heritage and history, the steps were in poor form, and undergoing a full restoration, Fruitmarket Gallery became involved in commissioning Martin Creed to create a public artwork to reinvigorate the Steps. 

As one of the most successful public art commissions I have ever walked on, Work No. 1059 consists of 109 different slabs of marble from all over the world, leading the public up and down a history of decadence and craftsmanship, the very basics of art applied in the civilized world. As a much used thoroughfare, it’s also giving consciousness to each step taken within the context of history without detracting from their function as steps. Contrasting warm and cool tones, playing with the natural light evident in certain parts of the path, Creed’s background as a musician surfaces in this complicated composition of architectural basics. 

We’ll wait and see how conservation and maintenance of the Steps go, or if their dilapidation will be welcomed as part of the evolution of the art work. 

Image credit: The Fruitmarket Gallery, 2011 Photograph: Gautier Deblonde.