Either a "beacon for all our futures and a landmark of outstanding proportions" (New Labour) or an "upturned wok held together by giant knitting needles which doubles as a garish symbol of commercialism" (most everybody else), the Millennium Dome and its attendant debate have, if nothing else, thrust culture and its representation into the broadsheets and tabloids alike. And while the Dome may not work on certain levels, it offers a strong pointer towards how art, and in particular sculpture, can be made into something bold, accessible and exciting.
The individual "zones" within the building - interpretations of concepts such as "learning", "work", "faith" and "mind" have had mixed reviews, and the real success story of the dome lies in the fact that it is Europe's largest acreage of contemporary art. All the works are newly commissioned and the site brings together work by both international and local artists. Art, and significantly how it is displayed, has consistently topped "customer satisfaction" surveys at the Dome.
The centrepiece work is Ron Mueck's tremendous Boy, a 20foot-high crouching child, rather unfortunately labelled "a thinker for the millennium". What most impresses about Mueck's work (he first came to prominence during the controversial Sensation exhibition of Young British Artists) is that he has combined size with eerieness. Boy stares, evoking all the ambivalent emotions a ventriloquist's dummy, and his gaze seems to fix you no matter where you try to hide. Bored and withdrawn or attentive and ready-for-action, you can make your own mind up about his intent. After Mueck's challenging work, it's time to chill out in the "Faith" zone where American artist James Turrell has created an immersive light installation which he calls Night Rain. Perhaps the favourite among Dome-goers, Turrell (famous for his work with light) has filled a chamber with a large length of gauze and softly glowing lights. The colour evolves through the spectrum from pink to blue to white and the effect is not dissimilar from an up-close-and-personal encounter with a Rothko - that same sense of quiet reflection which the colour field induces. It's a powerful work in a strangely restful way.
Something a bit more fun 'n' games is to be had by taking in the sheer size and playfulness of David Mach's National Portrait. A giant work, three metres high and 78 metres long, it is made up of more than 250,000 photographs sent in from across the UK. Although a collage, it is seamless and it works as a representation of everything that goes into making Britain a multi-cultural society. Your gaze switches from a pastoral scene of village cricket to a bangin' rave party to a mosque. A critical note on contemporary British society is struck by the satirical cartoonist (and no mean sculptor, on this evidence) Gerald Scarfe, whose life-size works include hard-hitting caricatures of "the British thug" and "the British racist". Good to see that not everything in the Dome is a back-slapping exercise on how great the country is.
After going back for another dose of James Turrell's beguiling Night Rain, it was time to leave the dome behind and head outside where a sculpture park lies on the banks of the Thames. Richard Wilson's Slice of Reality looks, at first glance, as if Damien Hirst has been let loose with a chainsaw and a ship. A vertical cross-section of a ship, from bridge to hull, the work makes a lot more sense when you realise you're standing on the Greenwich Meridian Line. Nominated for a Turner Prize in 1989, Wilson is famous for his slicing and was merrily cutting things in half long before Hirst hit the scene. A clever and amusing work - and site-specific. Tony Cragg's trio of giant figures - commonly known as "the chess pieces" - look as if they've been haphazardly thrown together - until closer inspection reveals faces and profiles.
A fascinating piece of "sound sculpture" nearby taps into Greenwich's maritime history. Tacita Dean's Friday/Saturday octagonal sculpture emits sounds from different ports around the world in their given time zone, 24 hours a day. Always surrounded by people, it is a simple and obvious work that is, nonetheless, one of the most interesting in the sculpture park.
A sort of exterior version of Night Rain is created by Anish Kapoor with her Parabolic Waters work. A massive mirrored structure reflects the sky and draws the viewer into its reflection. A graceful mix of engineering and art, coloured water spins around the mirror offering a series of ever-mutating images.
Also using the outdoors to great effect is multi-media artist Bill Culbert who has produced a series of "light lines" in the space over the sculpture park. These electric-blue rods (made from four lines of thin, bent tubes filled with argon gas) are striking and effective given that they look like ever-present bolts of lightening. And finally, a good laugh is to be had on the way out thanks to Rose Finn-Kelcey's hilarious mix of chocolate and prayer. In It Pays To Pray, Finn-Kelcey has adapted four chocolate-bar vending machines so that when you put a 20-pence piece into the slot, a "prayer" message is flashed onto the screen. Spiritual nourishment indeed. An eclectic, energising and above all, downright entertaining mix of art and sculpture has certainly provided the Dome with some critical success. While they needed 12 million visitors over the 12 months to break even, they now believe they'll only top six million by the year's end. But in the commissioning and installation of these (mostly) fabulous art works, they have provided a lesson in how best to marry art, occasion and venue.
The Millennium Dome is open until December 31st. For tickets and further information contact the British Travel Centre on tel: 01-6708000
