In terms of Edinburgh failures, it's right up there with the 'disgrace' atop Calton Hill and the trams fiasco.
Installed in 1973, the helix-shaped kinetic sculpture was a piece of public art that stood for a far shorter period than intended at Picardy Place.
Positioned within a stone’s throw of the then brand new St James Centre, the doomed sculpture consisted of a series of neon strip bulbs that would flash and change colour according to the direction and intensity of the wind.
An anemometer, wind vane and dimmer switch were integrated to help create a spectacular 'feast of light' that promised to produce an almost limitless number of colourful combinations. At least that was the idea.
The 80ft structure, which was designed by Philip Vaughan and Roger Dainton, rarely worked as it was supposed to, leading to much ridicule from locals.
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Residents began to conjure up a whole host of unflattering nicknames for the kinetic sculpture, such as the 'wonky pylon'. Conservative MP and future Secretary of State for Scotland Malcolm Rifkind blasted the project as a waste of cash, dubbing it 'the monument to a drunken scaffolder'.
The 1970s being a time of austerity measures, power cuts and fuel shortages were commonplace. The £11,000 (around £100,000, when adjusted for inflation) light sculpture bore the brunt of this and restrictions were placed on how often it could be illuminated during its early years.
But its fortunes would never improve. Technical issues dogged the kinetic sculpture and it would never deliver the light spectacle that had been promised by the Edinburgh Corporation.
While the sculpture stood in place for a decade, many locals swear they rarely - if ever - saw it working.
Writing on the Lost Edinburgh Facebook group, Morag Gray said: “I saw it lit up once. I was on the top deck of a bus on a dark night and looked across and it was all different colours. The rest of the time, it just looked strange”.
While a similar neon tower by Philip Vaughan and Roger Dainton that continues to occupy the roof of the Hayward Gallery in London has achieved something of cult status, Edinburgh’s version didn’t last long enough.
The kinetic sculpture was removed in 1983 and, fittingly, has never seen the light of day since.
