MAIDSTONE – Kent County Council has sparked a wave of public backlash after selling a significant public sculpture by Sir Antony Gormley back to the artist himself to plug a hole in its struggling budget.
The artwork, titled Two Stones, was a staple of the Kent History and Library Centre since 2013, but its sudden removal last week was conducted without public consultation. Created while Gormley was a student and teacher at the Maidstone College of Art in the late 1970s, the piece features a massive eight-tonne granite boulder contrasted against a bronze and concrete replica.
Opposition leaders have labelled the “surreptitious” sale a cultural tragedy, with Green Party councillor Stuart Jeffery describing the move as a shameful sacrifice of local heritage for short-term financial gain.
While the council defended the transaction as a necessary step to protect frontline services amid mounting debt, they have refused to disclose the sale price due to confidentiality agreements. The empty space now stands as a stark reminder of the county’s fiscal crisis, leaving Maidstone without a vital link to its most prestigious artistic alumnus.