Major honour for Harrogate artist famed for astonishing paper cuts

A Harrogate artist says she was delighted to answer an 11th-hour call to produce a masterpiece for the president of the UCI, cycling's world body.
By Graham Chalmers
Published 27th Nov 2019, 17:03 BST
Updated 27th Nov 2019, 17:04 BST
Harrogate artist Anita Bowerman's work featured in a UCI presentation by tghe chairman of British Cycling, Frank Slevin, left, to the President of the UCI, David Lappartient.Harrogate artist Anita Bowerman's work featured in a UCI presentation by tghe chairman of British Cycling, Frank Slevin, left, to the President of the UCI, David Lappartient.
Harrogate artist Anita Bowerman's work featured in a UCI presentation by tghe chairman of British Cycling, Frank Slevin, left, to the President of the UCI, David Lappartient.

Since the Tour de France came to Yorkshire in 2014, Anita Bowerman has been creating cycling artwork to commemorate the great events the county has staged and the UCI was no exception.

Famed for her extraordinary paper cuts, in particular, Anita is no stranger to such commissions - she was the first official artist of the Tour de Yorkshire - creating a stainless-steel version of my paper cut in 2015.

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Anita, who is based at her Dove Tree Art Gallery and Studio located at Back Granville Road in Harrogate, said: “As a Yorkshire artist based in Harrogate, I was thrilled and honoured to have been asked to create this piece for such a momentous, international event and glad British Cycling and the President of the UCI loved it.”

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    The story starts in September this year when the world-famous Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) race was staged in Harrogate.

    The races started in towns around Yorkshire, eventually making their way to the finish line in Harrogate.

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    Anita was contacted by British Cycling two weeks before the event and was asked to create a piece of artwork made from stainless-steel to present to the President of the UCI David Lappartient.

    It was a tight deadline but thanks to amazing suppliers and with the help of her brother, who is an engineer, she managed to meet it.

    The sculpture measures 50cm wide and features a cyclist, arms aloft, at the finish line with other cyclists riding around a wheel and the words ‘Together we can build the cycling tomorrow’ around the edge.

    It was presented by the chairman of British Cycling, Frank Slevin to the President of the UCI, David Lappartient at the UCI closing awards ceremony at Harrogate International Centre.

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    It was extremely well received and Frank Slevin, Chairman of British Cycling said ‘The sculpture is a beautiful piece and seemed totally fitting as a gift from us to our world governing body.

    "It is certainly something I would like hanging on my wall. I would like to thank Anita for her amazing work."

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