Industry and Genius statue

I haven’t really taken much notice of the statues and art work around Birmingham before I suppose I’m like most people just walking pass and not taking in the sights.
But yesterday I thought I would take my time and not rush taking in the sights after all I was in the city to do the jewellery quarter trail and I had no time limit to do this, it’s a strange bit of art but it gets you to stop and take notice once you know it’s there which is quite clever.
From now on I will be looking out and taking my time when I walk pass the statues of city centre

John Baskerville (1706 – 1775) is something of a local hero. You may know of the classic typeface that bears his name.
The great typographer and printer was honoured by the creation of this statue in 1990. These large blocks of stone, just in front of Baskerville House, spell out the name «Virgil» in the Baskerville typeface. The word is in reverse, as it would have been in the traditional printing process. The name is significant because Virgil’s poems were printed in Baskerville in 1757.
Local artist David Patten created the sculpture. He took the name from the title of a poem about Baskerville.

Have you ever wondered about those funny looking blocks of concrete in front of Baskerville House, near the war memorial?
They’re actually called Industry and Genius: Monument to John Baskerville. They’re made of Portland stone and have reversed bronze letters embossed on the top of each. They are in the form of type face created by the typographer and printer John Baskerville and are spelling the word ‘Virgil’.
The site of these is no coincidence either as it was where Baskerville established his printing works in 1748. This is where he designed new inks, made paper and printed books. This was quite a hive of activity in its day, and the equivalent to the hand held devices and tablet’s of today.
Next time you’re walking past, why not take a moment to look at them in more detail and maybe pass on your new found information to others, children especially love to hear about their favourite clmbing frame!

This is one for all the typography enthusiasts (/​geeks/​obsessives… I know what a type face can do to people…)
It’s a monument to John Baskerville, who was a famous local printer — hence the type face. The sculpture is located in front of Baskerville House — appropriately — in Centenary Square. I really like this sculptural tribute — partly because it’s graphic, rather than the more conventional, figurative statues in Centenary Square. Also, Baskerville is a nice font, n’est pas? It contains words, which makes me happy (well, one word: ‘Virgil’ — a reference to the Roman poet whose works were printed by Baskerville in his now famous typeface) and references Roman literature, which I spent many years studying. Oh yeah, I know how to party.
It’s called ‘Industry and Genius’ after an article of that title that appeared in the Aris’s Gazette in 1751, praising the work of John Baskerville. It also looks a bit like a climbing frame, is nice and chunky and consists of a combination of stone and bronze — all things that I like. As I said, this is my favourite of the public monuments in Centenary Square. Go check it out.