Gormley Statue The Edge

Sir Antony Gormley’s Edge II Statue has been attached high up on Common Lane House since 2002. It was commissioned by the College in 2001 in a quest to purchase modern art from the best living contemporary artists. Gormley (b.1950) decided where it should be installed on College grounds. Hence the statue faces looking down onto the path, and now onto an Eton Walkway marker. Former Provost of Eton Eric Anderson pointed out: ‘For a school keenly interested in rank, relative position and the long strive upwards, his presence above the street is a reminder of another way of looking at the world.’ Opposite is the Tony Little Centre, dedicated to ‘innovation and research in learning’, where boys with additional needs study and new methods of teaching are discussed. Nearby is another boys’ house, Hopgarden, a reminder that at one time the College had its own brew house and the boys routinely drank beer, not water, as was the custom.