London  - An art project with a difference was launched in London Monday as ordinary people lined up to turn themselves into living statues for an hour in London's Trafalgar Square.

An initial 14,500 people have been chosen to take part in the event, organized by leading British sculptor Andrew Gormley.

The men and women are to stand for an our each, in any weather, and around the clock, on the square's usually empty fourth plinth, in the shadow of the towering column of admiral Nelson.

The One and Other project will see a different person standing on the plinth every hour for 24 hours a day over the next 100 days.

Living statues for following months will be announced later, with 2,400 people taking part up to 14 October.

Participants are chosen at random by a computer and can do anything they want on the plinth as long as it is legal.

Applications will be accepted until September 1 when the last group of people are chosen.

Housewife Rachel Wardell, 35, took her place as the first "living statue" when the event kicked off Monday.

"I wanted to be able to represent a normal, everyday stay-at-home mums who aren't normally a feature of major artworks - to show my kids now, and when they're older, that you can do, and be part of anything, no matter how ordinary you are or feel," she said.(dpa)