''Liverpool Resurgent'' is an artwork by Jacob Epstein, mounted above the main entrance to the former Lewis's department store building in Ranelagh Street, Liverpool. It comprises a large bronze statue and three relief panels. The current

Lewis's Building The Lewis's Building is a 20th-century Grade II listed building located in Liverpool, England. Purpose-built as the flagship store for the now defunct Lewis's department store chain, the building is set to be redeveloped as part of redevelopment ...

was constructed for Lewis's in 1947 by Fraser, Sons and Geary to designs by Gerald de Courcy Fraser: he had also designed the previous 1920s Lewis's store that had been destroyed by bombing in the Second World War. The main high bronze statue stands on the portico above the entrance. It depicts a naked man standing on a plinth shaped like the prow of a ship projecting from the façade of the building, with left arm stretched out and right arm raised as if calling or signalling. It symbolises Liverpool's resurgence following the war, but it is nicknamed locally as either "Nobby Lewis" or "Dickie Lewis". Below the statute is a modern Egyptian-style portico in

Portland stone Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries are cut in beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a building sto ...

with four giant order square columns rising three floors, framing three entrance doors. Above each door is a

ciment fondu Calcium aluminate cements are cements consisting predominantly of hydraulic calcium aluminates. Alternative names are "aluminous cement", "high-alumina cement" and "Ciment fondu" in French. They are used in a number of small-scale, specialized ap ...

relief panel also by Epstein, installed in 1955, representing the new generation who will benefit from the rebuilding: one of children fighting, another of a baby in a pram beside a dog, and the third depicting children playing. The children are modelled on Epstein's children and grandchildren. The work was unveiled on 20 November 1956 to celebrate the centenary of Lewis's and the completion of its reconstruction works. The statue became known as a meeting place, and was mentioned in the 1962 song "In My Liverpool Home" by

Peter McGovern Peter John McGovern (28 October 1927 – 1 April 2006) was an English songwriter and activist. Life and career Pete McGovern was born in Liverpool, England, on 28 October 1927. Both of his parents were Irish. His father, Thomas McGovern, was fro ...

: File:Lewis' Liverpool 1.jpg File:Epstein Lewis's Liverpool 1.jpg File:Epstein Lewis's Liverpool 2.jpg File:Epstein Lewis's Liverpool 3.jpg The store closed in 2007 and the building is being redeveloped as Central Village, with retail units, a hotel and gymnasium. It is a Grade II listed building.

References

Who was Dickie?
Liverpool Hidden History

Liverpool Walks
Liverpool Lewis's regeneration plan revealed
BBC News, 20 September 2017
Lewis's Department Store
National Heritage List for England, Historic England
''Liverpool Resurgent''
Streets of Liverpool, 27 September 2012 {{Jacob Epstein Culture in Liverpool Sculptures by Jacob Epstein Monuments and memorials in Liverpool Nude sculptures in the United Kingdom Outdoor sculptures in the United Kingdom Statues in England