''Dancing with Dandelions'' or ''One O'clock Wish'' is a sculpture depicting a
fairy
A fairy (also fay, fae, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Celtic, Slavic, Germanic, English, and French folklore), a form of spirit, ...
who appears to be fighting the wind while holding a
dandelion. It was created by
Robin Wight, an artist from
Staffordshire
Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...
. The artist now produces a series of wire sculptures featuring fairies and dandelions.
History
Robin Wight has created four ''Dancing with Dandelions'' sculptures, which he calls "''One O'clock Wish''. He called it his signature piece and has said it is the most requested sculpture. He claims that a 20 second video of the sculpture he called ''Living the Dream'' went viral in 2014.
Wight creates sculptures of fairies with dandelions. In 2011 he began a business called Fantasywire. In his business he creates sculptures from wires. He placed several of his sculptures on a trail in his home town of
Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England, with an area of . In 2019, the city had an estimated population of 256,375. It is the largest settlement ...
, England, and they were spotted by a marketing manager from
Trentham Gardens in Stoke-on-Trent. Trentham Gardens then commissioned several of the sculptures.
They used the fairies to create a "Fairy Trail" on the grounds to display the ''Dancing with Dandelions'' sculptures.
In 2014 a visitor shared a photo of one of the sculptures, and Wight's Fantasywire Facebook page swelled to 440,000 followers.
His original sculpture, which was referred to as ''Dancing with Dandelions'' (he calls it ''One O'clock Wish''), is his most well-known sculpture.
Design of fairy series
The fairies Wight builds are winged creatures, and they are posed in positions that contort their bodies. The dandelions appear to be blowing in a brisk wind. They are made with
stainless steel wire
Stainless steel is an alloy of iron that is resistant to rusting and corrosion. It contains at least 11% chromium and may contain elements such as carbon, other nonmetals and metals to obtain other desired properties. Stainless steel's resis ...
. The design begins with a skeleton of thicker steel, and then different sizes of wires are used to create a lifelike appearance.
Each fairy has "realistic anatomy and musculature", which is created from the stainless steel wire.
The artist puts a stone inside the sculptures to represent a heart. Occasionally Wight engraves a message on the stone hearts inside the fairies.
Reception
In 2016 Pulse Nigeria published a list of "10 amazing sculptures from around the world". They put the ''Dancing with Dandelions'' sculpture as number 9.
In 2017
Bored Panda put the sculpture at number 2 on their list of "42 of the Most Amazing Sculptures in the World".
References
External links
Video Dancing with Dandelions sculptureWire fairy assembly of Dancing with Dandelions (time lapse)
{{coord missing, Staffordshire
21st-century sculptures
Fairies in art
Outdoor sculptures in England
Steampunk
Tourist attractions in Staffordshire