Geograph - photograph every grid square

The Widnes Waterfront Regeneration Programme was developed to transform over 300 acres of former chemical works on the north bank of the River Mersey into a mixed use area, providing a place for businesses to locate and for people to enjoy. The programme began in 2002 using European and UK Government funding and has since attracted further private sector investment.

The Future Flower by sculptor Tonkin Liu reflects the transformation of this area of former industrial dereliction on this section of the River Mersey, all in close proximity to a working power plant and the Sankey Canal.

The Future Flower sculpture is three metres in diameter and 14 metres high. Constructed out of triangles and pentagons, the steel structural frame is in the form of an icosi-dodecahedron onto which 120 perforated galvanised mild steel petals are fixed.

Within the flower, a central stalk with branches holds 60 lights, directing them into separate clusters of petals. Beneath the flower, three mini wind turbines are attached to the stem. These operate off-grid to power the lights. A wind force of 7mph is sufficient to power the low voltage LED lights, which build in intensity as the wind increases.

There are obvious similarities in concept, between this and the same sculptor’s “Singing Ringing Tree” at Burnley Link .