Ambassador 1, 2021. 155 x 50 x 137cms. Photos this page by Anna Arca

Locke imagines a dystopian future. Are these riders real living people and horses, or memorial statues of generals, kings and queens?

Whoever these men and women are, they are dragging the past forward with them into the future. Their animals are weighed down with baggage, and they them themselves are festooned with glittering symbols that echo our real past and real cultures. There is a cascade of stuff; Benin bronzes, portraits of Toussaint Louverture, colonial medals, six-guns, slave pennies, symbols of justice… The Ambassadors are envoys, bringing messages from the past to the future. Because a people that loses or supresses aspects of it’s own history can be ignored or controlled by others. In a time where black history has been overlooked, these ambassadors are a reminder of the substance of history.

Commissioned by The Lowry, Manchester UK

Ambassador 2, 149 x 62 x 137cms & Ambassador 3, 157 x 52 x 137cms, both 2021.

Ambassador 4, 2022. 162 x 50 x 137cm plus flag.