Step into The Bridgewater Hall and look upward. Suspended high against the angular roof is Deryck Healey’s Visual Poem, a sweeping, twenty-metre ribbon of steel that appears at once weightless and monumental. Created by the South African-born artist, who first made his name in the 1960s as a textile designer, the work draws on Manchester’s rich textile heritage. Its undulating forms also echo the influence of another artist inspired by fabric: Henri Matisse, who grew up surrounded by the vibrant colours of the textile trade in Bohain, Picardy.
While textiles were his starting point, Healey (1937 -2004) approached this sculpture with as much sensitivity to colour as to form. Visual Poem needed to exist in harmony with the Hall’s already bold palette – the deep tones of its carpets, the burnished patina of its bronze doors, and the polished cream and blue limestones of its walls and floors. His solution was one of restraint and surprise. Seen head-on, the sculpture presents itself as a series of white billows, curling gently into space. But take just a step to either side, and flashes of red, yellow, and blue appear along the rippling edges, each hue painted on the underside of the steel in a seemingly random sequence. These hidden colours cast soft reflections onto the wall behind, creating a quiet, lyrical play of light.
For concertgoers, the experience of Visual Poem unfolds gradually. Arriving at the Hall, they may notice only a subtle wash of shifting colour. But as they leave the auditorium, their eyes are suddenly met with the vibrant undersides of the ribbons, revealed in full. In this way, the sculpture becomes a kind of finale to their visit, echoing the musical journey they have just experienced.
Healey intended for this transformation to be felt almost subconsciously. The colours change in intensity with the quality of the light – natural daylight softening into the glow of artificial lamps, winter brightness giving way to the mellow tones of summer evenings. It is a work that breathes with the seasons, each day offering a slightly different encounter.
Born in Durban in 1937, Deryck Healey studied at the Manchester School of Art between 1955 and 1958, later establishing an international reputation as a graphic artist, design consultant, and master colourist. His career included solo exhibitions across the globe and contributions to leading art publications. Speaking of his practice, he described himself as “searching for a world consciousness through an art of concern.” Visual Poem, with its quiet interplay of light, form, and history, is one such work that invites the viewer to slow down, look closely, and see the familiar anew.