Living sculpture to grace plinth in central London

LONDON, (Reuters Life!) - More than 2,000 people will take turns to occupy a vacant plinth on London's Trafalgar Square as part of a "living sculpture" project.

British sculptor Antony Gormley was named on Monday as one of two new artists chosen to adorn the "fourth plinth" in the heart of the city, a platform used to showcase different works that are normally rotated every 18 months or so.

Gormley's "One and Other" was one of six shortlisted proposals, and involves members of the public taking turns to stand on the platform for an hour at a time, 24 hours a day for 100 consecutive days, adding up to 2,400 individuals.

Models for his winning design show how a safety net will be constructed around the top of the platform.

"Through elevation on to the plinth and removal from common ground, the body becomes a metaphor, a symbol and allows us to reflect on the diversity, vulnerability and particularity of the individual in contemporary society," Gormley said of the plan.

The commission is likely to go live in late 2009.

The other winner from the shortlist was London-born Yinka Shonibare, whose "Nelson's Ship in a Bottle" is a scale replica of British admiral Horatio Nelson's ship HMS Victory in a giant glass bottle.

The plinth stands in the shadow of Nelson's Column, which is topped by a statue of the admiral best known for leading his forces to victory in the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 against Spanish and French navies. Nelson was killed in the battle.

The plinth had been intended to be the base for a statue of King William IV on horseback, but the figure was never completed because of a lack of funds. For more than 150 years debate has raged as to who or what should occupy the plinth.