Pollok Park memorial to remember lives lost to Covid

A memorial paying tribute to those who have lost their lives to Covid-19 has been unveiled at a Glasgow park.

I remember: Scotland's Covid Memorial was designed by artist and poet Alec Finlay and is a series of tree supports throughout Pollok Park which naturally form a walk.

The £250,000 memorial was created following a campaign by The Herald.

It received £40,000 from the Scottish government as well as donations from businesses, groups and individuals.

A total of 15 structures, which also recognise all those affected by the pandemic, were unveiled on Friday but there are expected to be 40 throughout the park by next March.

Mr Finlay told BBC Scotland: "When I was commissioned to make the memorial the first thing that came into my mind was a word - support. I felt that during those early months of the pandemic there had been a very profound moment in society where people had offered one another support in a way that had maybe been hidden for a long time.

"I took that idea of the support and I thought about tree supports. We took photographs of bereaved families, or people with long Covid, in a pose of support with a tree. And they became the artworks. So rather than making the memorial myself I really made it with people who had been affected by the pandemic."

Mr Finlay, who himself has long Covid, said that by the Day of Remembrance next March there would be 40 structures.

"We deliberately chose to make the whole park the memorial rather than a small garden," he said.

Carolyn Murdoch, a member of the Covid-19 support group whose 104-year-old father died in April 2020, said: "It's somewhere to focus and meet other people as well. We've made good friends who understand what we've been through.

"Obviously what happened when you lost someone at that time, with funerals etc, it was very surreal. This is somewhere we can now go together and walk through - it's nice.

"My dad would probably say 'oh for goodness sake, all this fuss' but he would love it because he did love to be in the limelight.

"I've been here a few times. You know it's special to you."

Connie McCready's 51-year-old fiancé died in May 2020 after 35 days in hospital. He was put on a ventilator the day after arriving in hospital.

Speaking about the memorial, she said: "This isn't just for families with Covid. This is for everyone that's been affected throughout the pandemic. It's somewhere for people to come and find solace."

An audio book of people's memories has also been created, read by Scottish actor Robert Carlyle.

Deputy First Minister John Swinney attended the unveiling on behalf of First Minister Nicola Sturgeon who currently has Covid.

Mr Swinney said: "The wooden structures Alec has created are there to epitomise solidarity and support.

"But the fact that that solidarity and support has been established here in the beautiful tranquillity of Pollok Park is another essential part of our remembrance about Covid. Because our parks, our green spaces, our natural environment, became so precious to all of us during Covid.

"They gave us a place in which we could breathe fresh air and a place where we could be at peace. I hope this memorial becomes a place of peace where individuals can try to come to terms with their loss in the most beautiful and tranquil surroundings."