This month, Art on the Underground is unveiling a new artwork at Stratford station, London, by the Kurdish artist Ahmet Öğüt, entitled Saved by the Whale’s Tail, Saved by Art. It was inspired by a metro accident outside Rotterdam in which the train overran the elevated station stop, but was saved from plunging into the water below by a 10-metre-high sculpture of a whale’s tail, one of two placed there by artist Maarten Struijs. There were no passengers on board, and the driver managed to escape unharmed.
Was this a one-off? Have there been other works of art that have played a rescue role? Or is their potential for salvation solely restricted to the spiritual? Astrid, Coventry
