Stories

Inside unused office space in the Mailbox lies a 25 metre Fin or Common Whale. It's skin is an exquisite grey cashmere wool, it weighs over a tonne and is the creation of Italian artist Claudia Losi.

The whale with a whale brain in the foreground

The whale sits in a stark concrete space in the centre of Birmingham, and about as far from the sea as it could be: "I like the idea of respect for the whale, and the idea of it being a side show and out of its habitat" says Claudia.

The whale is a life-size 25 metres long

Whales in mountains

Inspiring the project is the knowledge that whales once 'swam in the mountains' near her home in Italy: "When I was a child I lived in the mountains in Piacenza in south Milan.

"It was completely covered by the sea millions of years ago. It's amazing to walk in the middle of the hills and find shells, fossils and things from the sea, in the middle of what are now vineyards and mountains.

The 'skin' is knitted cashmere

"Whales once swam in a place that is now the sky, here in these mountains."

Claudia and her friends also remember a travelling show in Italy during the 70s. A 22 metre whale that had been hunted and killed in northern Europe was used as a subject in a sideshow that toured eastern Europe, France and Italy, "It was a terrible picture, very sad" says Claudia, "people still remember the smell of this picture of death."

The project has engaged people worldwide

People's response to her cashmere whale also vary greatly across the world. She says the Greenpeace and environmental message are there, but are not the prominent themes she wants people to take away. Make your own mind up, she says.

Explaining the ocean

"I've had astonishing reactions across the world, in Ecuador I tried to involve people so found a way to collaborate with people in a village, for them to knit whales, little whales.

"I had to explain what a whale was, I hadn't considered they wouldn’t know. They don’t have TV or read or write, and I was explaining something they hadn't seen - they hadn't even seen the ocean or sea, so had no concept of it.

Children's whales

"I explained it was like a big fish and it was like 3 buses and I had to explain how big the sea was because they had only seen lakes. It was very emotional. It was a really different culture."

The women in Ecuador knitted whales and dyed them in beautiful colours to accompany Claudia's exhibition. The women were paid for each whale they produced and were invited to the exhibition in Quito "they were astonished, it was incredible to watch their reactions" she says.

Whales by Erdington schoolchildren

Birmingham whales

Here in Birmingham, Claudia has also recruited the help of locals. Erdington school children designed their own whales, with the drawings then being transformed into small stuffed toys. The small fabric whales now provide company for their larger cashmere cousin in the Mailbox exhibition.

Where to see the whale

The whale has another year of life before its cashmere skin will be turned into suits for men. The 'skin' is extremely delicate and fragile and has degenerated and aged over the years, much in the way a real whale would.

The 'Balena Project' (Balena means whale in Italian) is free to visit, on level 5 of the Mailbox, Birmingham, B1 1XL.

The exhibition is open Tuesday to Sunday from 12noon - 7pm until 26th Octopber 2008.