A DUTCH artist who created a controversial public artwork in Paisley has slammed plans to demolish it.

The Rain Tower, in County Square, will be torn down this summer after eight years of technical problems and public health fears.

The £180,000 stone landmark was designed to turn recycled rain water into a stunning waterfall.

But it repeatedly broke down and was turned off last summer.

Engineers will start dismantling the tower, which opened in 2000, next month following talks with the original funders.

But the move has incensed creator Jan van Munster, of Oost-Souburg, the Netherlands, and he wants Renfrewshire Council bosses to reconsider.

He said today: "I understand the public health risk with the recycled water but the tower is part of a concept I made for the Square and surrounding area.

"It seems too easy to demolish and remove it without thinking over other options. It could be turned into a light installation."

Over the years, the water supply was closed off during winter months because of frost damage to the pipes and the drainage system also required constant repairs.

Van Munster is highly respected in Europe and his work is displayed in modern art museums across the Netherlands and Belgium.

But Ellen Farmer, president of the Old Paisley Society, and author of A Century of Paisley, said: "I have never liked it and don't think it looks right.

"I feel sorry for the artist but if you took a straw poll down Paisley High Street, you would struggle to find anyone with something nice to say about it."