Students will release "latent beauty" of neglected space
Land under the Hammersmith Flyover is being transformed into a "kinaesthetic" piece of art aiming to stimulate local interest and encourage public interaction.
The architects are all post graduate students from Oxford Brookes University and the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain.
The students have three days to complete the art, which must be finished by next Thursday, January 31. The architects will then fly out to Barcelona to work on a similar project.
The Hammersmith art will be hosted by Barry Martin, a significant contributor to the UK art world during the 1960’s, with close ties to the V&A and Tate museums.
Many of his kinaesthetic pieces explore ideas of play, movement, stasis and visual manipulation and are now part of major international collections.
He says: " One of the escalating problems of urban dwelling in the twenty-first century is how to creatively develop those negative and neglected spaces thrown up by the new infrastructures, designed to satisfy the ever increasing needs of transport, road, rail, sea and air. This project is inspired to tackle such problems."
The aim of the exercise is to release the latent beauty and dynamism of the space, close to the junction of the Fulham Palace Road and the Hammersmith Gyratory, in a provocative yet captivating way.
Deputy Mayor of Hammersmith & Fulham, Cllr Frances Stainton helped to chose the location. She says: " We have gone for a very central and prominent spot that is certainly in need of some visual improvements. I drive underneath the Flyover regularly and it would benefit from some stimulating and thought-provoking art.
" There is no doubt that art/architecture can brighten up the mundane and have a very positive impact on society as a whole. I look forward to welcoming these students for what should be a fascinating project."
Alex Gimenez, Professor at Universidad Polytechnica de Cataluna in Barcelona says: "Students from UPC Barcelona are being given a wonderful opportunity to participate in this international collaboration and make a positive contribution to the public realm in a great part of London. We are particularly excited about the dynamics of the site and seek to reflect this within our design piece."
We'll bring you pictures of the results once they are completed.
January 25, 2013
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