''The Sockman'' ( commissioned as ''The Sock'') is a

bronze statue Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals (such as phosphorus) or metalloids (su ...

Loughborough Loughborough ( ) is a market town in the Charnwood (borough), Charnwood Borough of Leicestershire, England; it is the administrative centre of Charnwood Borough Council. At the United Kingdom 2021 census, the town's built-up area had a popula ...

town centre. The sculpture depicts a man seated on a bollard, naked except for the eponymous

sock A sock is a piece of clothing worn on the feet and often covering the ankle or some part of the Calf (leg), calf. Some types of shoes or boots are typically worn over socks. In ancient times, socks were made from leather or matted animal hair. ...

on his left foot. The sock is symbolic of Loughborough's

hosiery Hosiery, (, ) also referred to as legwear, describes garments worn directly on the foot, feet and human leg, legs. The term originated as the collective term for products of which a maker or seller is termed a hosier; and those products are also ...

industry, and the

plinth A pedestal or plinth is a support at the bottom of a statue, vase, column, or certain altars. Smaller pedestals, especially if round in shape, may be called socles. In civil engineering, it is also called ''basement''. The minimum height o ...

is engraved with images of the town's history. The piece has become iconic, and is used as a symbol for Loughborough.

History

In 1997,

Charnwood Borough Council Charnwood Borough Council is the local authority for the Borough of Charnwood, a non-metropolitan district in Leicestershire, England. Full council meetings are held at Loughborough Town Hall and the council's main offices are on Southfield Road ...

decided to have a sculpture to provide "an attractive feature and focus of public interest" in the newly-pedestrianised Loughborough Market Place. They chose a central site just in front of

Loughborough Town Hall The Loughborough Town Hall is a building fronting onto the Market Place in Loughborough, Leicestershire, England. Built as a corn exchange and ballroom in 1855, it later became a municipal building and subsequently a theatre. It is a Grade II li ...

. A competition was held in which five artists were selected to design a statue. A panel of local experts and laypeople were gathered to make the decision; the winning design was by

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

sculptor,

Shona Kinloch Shona Kinloch (born 1962) is a Scottish artist based in East Kilbride who specialises in sculpture. Education Kinloch received a Bachelor of Arts with honours in Fine Art (Sculpture) from the Glasgow School of Art in 1984, followed by Post ...

. Her piece was favoured for artistic quality, technical merit, and durability (being both weather and vandal resistant). The council commissioned ''The Sock'' in April 1998 at a cost of £23,000.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sockman Loughborough 1998 sculptures Statues in England Sculptures of men in the United Kingdom Bronze sculptures in England Socks