THE LIMEHOUSE FOUNTAIN PLAZA PROJECT
What was required for this commission? Nerves made of steel, eyes ferociously focused on the budget, a great team, and buckets of experience!
I was commissioned to design and create a large-scale public fountain and benches in the heart of the London borough of Tower Hamlets, on the northern bank of the river Thames.
After meeting the board of directors and residents, after assessing their visions and what they wanted to achieve with this new project, I decided to go for a design that would combine elegance, simplicity, and modernity… and the allocated budget!
On the presentation of an eclectic palette of colours, the wave motif in blue and light green tones was selected to replace an existing 10-year-old mosaic that had not resisted the bashing of bad weather.
The biggest challenge was the 3 months’ timeframe given by my clients. The second challenge was to create a modern mosaic design on a monumental scale, a mosaic that would withstand the elements and the passing of time.
The goal was to bring the residents and the passers-by together around this brand-new public art installation but also create a new appeal to the neighbourhood and its businesses.
Five days and a team of 10 people was needed to produce and install the 48 square meters fountain and its giant benches during the harshest weather conditions.
Impossible to forget a giant gazebo flying high up in the sky!
Dimension: 48 square metres
Material: Vitreous glass tiles
Year: 2014
Photo credit: Lou Smith and Nathalie Vin