Passers-by would have been shocked to see the art installation of 84 sculptures of men that were placed on top of the This Morning studio on Monday. The powerful imagery was done as part of a ground-breaking campaign to raise awareness of male suicide in the UK, and the fact that 84 men take their own lives every week. In fact, suicide is tragically the biggest killer of men under the age of 45, and three in four suicides are male. The sculptures were done by US artist Mark Jenkins and Sandra Fernandez, and were created based on the likeness of real men who sadly took their own lives, with the support of their family and friends.
© Photo: ITVHolly and Phillip spoke about the importance of the installation
Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield discussed the installation on This Morning, and Phillip said: "Here at this morning we never shy away from stories that can difficult to talk about - and without doubt, one of the most heart breaking is losing a loved one to suicide." Holly added: "That is why today we are unveiling 84 life sizes sculptures – each representing a real man who has taken his own life, in the hope that it will stop people in their tracks, make them pay attention and get them talking."
© Photo: ITVThe campaign is from male suicide prevention charity CALM
The campaign was launched by male suicide prevention charity CALM, and the CEO, Simon Gunning, said: "Achieving our goal of male suicide prevention requires everybody to take a stand, and we're thrilled that This Morningis taking a stand with us. CALM has been campaigning and providing support services for 11 years but, try as we might, it isn’t enough to tackle the enormous problem of male suicide. Project 84 is all about making the scale of the situation very clear to everyone who sees the sculptures, and we hope that by working with the families and friends of real men who have taken their lives, we can face the enormous issue of suicide together and strive for change."
