A visitor’s first glimpse of the sculpture in front of Goodwood House is a highlight of the Festival of Speed. The newly created artwork, forming the centrepiece of the whole event, is always a vast, breathtaking structure, but its exact design remains a closely guarded secret until the Festival itself.

This year, it was no surprise to find a work of art that celebrates the 50th birthday of the Jaguar E-type, but – as always – the sight itself was beyond imagining. Here was a 28-metre tall steel sculpture by Indian-born artist Gerry Judah, made from 500 metres of steel pipe, 1.2m in diameter, resulting in a structure that weighs a staggering 150 tons: the equivalent of 122 Series 1 E-types. The sculpture took 10 days to install (by a firm specialising in bridge building), as the video above dramatically summarises.

This is the first year that the Goodwood installation did not incorporate an actual car. Gerry Judah explains: “The E-type is famous for its shape but too small and delicate to hoist into the air. I thought I would like to express the form of the car itself without any embellishments. Everyone recognises the E-type, the shape speaks for itself. You can't compete with it, you can't digress from it.”

For more information on Gerry Judah and his Goodwood installations (including Audi, Alfa Romeo and Land Rover), see www.gerryjudah.com.

Text: Charis Whitcombe
Photos: Jaguar