The International Asbestos Memorial – Known and Unknown was a collaboration between Glasgow Artist Jephson Robb and the Clydebank Asbestos Group. Known and Unknown is a sculpture to remember the known victims of asbestos and to recognise those throughout the world who are either unacknowledged or unidentified.
Known and Unknown has the names of over 500 known victims engraved into the plaque whilst the other side remains blank, waiting for the names of the victims who are yet to come.
Manufactured in stainless steel, as a direct reference and heavy industry that is present in the shipbuilding history of Clydebank and an industry were asbestos was commonly use to lag the pipes and line the boiler, each sculpture contains two continuous mirror polished edges and two continuous brushed finished edges. The reflective mirror polished side contains the etched names of the victims, whilst the brushed stainless steel will remain blank in recognition of those will remain unknown.
Each section forms a perfect cube which is sectioned equally apart and positioned a forty five degree angle to the road so all sides are seen as true squares. When viewed off centre the sculptures appear to be descending into the past or reaching into the future capturing the essence of what the past will mean for the future.
Each year there will be a memorial who have lost their lives to asbestos and their names will be added each year in the space that has been left.
The Braid Project, Blackburn