The IRON HORSE
The Iron Horse travelled up from the far end of the line at my workshop yard in West Cornwall, & is now grazing the school field at his new home at OTTERHAM primary School , Otterham Station, (near Bude North Cornwall.)
Here are some pictures of the mechanical beast being welcomed by his co-designers and owners, the children & teachers of the school.
” the horse now standing at platform three…….”
The Legend of the Iron Horse.
There was once an Iron Horse, taller than a house.
In its belly, there burned a fierce fire,& smoke billowed from its head.
It ran at a furious pace along an Iron Ladder ,laid across the land from horizon to horizon
Its bright eyes made the night like day, & shone with the light of many clever things.
It was strong enough to carry anything anyone wanted,& take them almost everywhere.
It fetched the countryside to the town,& the cities to the sea.
One day, the fire in its belly went out,& some men came & took the Iron Ladder away.
The old Iron Horse had run its course.
New Iron Beasts speed along our lanes, today.
They carry people here & there, & back again,
they bring everything for everybody.
( David Kemp)
(written in response to ideas ,drawings & workshops with the children of
OTTERHAM primary school, June 2011)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY OTTERHAM SCHOOL!
This weekend,(July15th) the school celebrates 100 years educating the children of Otterham ,Marshgate & district
The Iron Horse has been assembled from found objects & recycled items that were once part of rural Cornish life, some of which recall how much life has changed in the County over the last 100 years.
Some of the things the Horse have been made of include;-
Musical Instruments from a miners silver Band
Organ Pipe from a Methodist Chapel
Wheels from a chicken coop,an Agricultural machine(possibly a Horse drawn Haycutter?),a Sailmakers sewing machine,a shipwelders trolley & a local brewery.
Landrover & tractor tyres
doors from a cornish range
A sweeps brush
An oil fuel tank
A fishermans float
A traffic cone
solar panels
