A NEW sculpture, the first in over a decade, has been unveiled in Winchester.

The artwork, erected by workman in the small open space in St George’s Street on Friday morning, is the work of German-born artist and sculptor Holger C. Lönze.

The £10,000 installation is one of the final touches to renovations recently completed on Casson Block, which the city council hopes will create a more welcoming atmosphere and enhance the area.

Mr Lönze’s bronze and steel sculpture Intersection has been inspired by the history of the vicinity behind the Hampshire Chronicle/Southern Daily Echo building.

It has been designed to create a link between the 1960s block and Winchester Cathedral - representing the intersection between the cathedral’s flying buttress and Casson’s post-and-beam structure.

Featuring contrasting materials, the sculpture which took three weeks to make, combines repoussé sheet bronze – created by hammering metal from the reverse side – with flat, polished stainless steel. The textures in the prices panels were created to represent rippling water referencing the Upper Brook’s history as part of the Roman drainage system of the River Itchen.

Mr Lönze said: “We used to just make bronze sculptures to commemorate someone, but now its more about architecture and history which is much more interesting. I like to look at a space and make art which fits into an area.”

He added: “I’m very pleased with the end result and I think it’s a beautiful space for it. There’s a lot of water-based history here: the old church was here, the Roman brook was here, and there used to be a fountain here in the 1970s.”

The fountain, installed by Winchester Rotary worked on, and off, until about the Millennium.

Intersection is the first public art since the Hampshire Jubilee Sculpture was unveiled in 2002.