"Stratford goes for gold with £3m Olympic metal leaves that sway in breeze"
Evening Standard- thursday 18 february
I read an article in the standard today about drawings for a string of tree sculptures designed to give a sense of arrival to Stratford (for the olympics), the sculptures are up to 16 metres tall and have large plates of titanium as leaves which are designed to sway in the wind. The height and scale of the sculptures would make them the largest kinetic sculptures in Britain. I personally really like the idea of sculptural landscapes. I think the sculptures will give Stratford a distinctive identity. I proposed for a project in Paddington Basin a tree sculpture with wide glass plates as leaves, which is a similar design, which I made a model for. I guess that is what really caught my imagination is the combination of art and landscape architecture in such a direct way, up until this degree (in landscape architecture) my focus was always fine art, i chose to specialise in fine art for the majority of the Foundation in art and design in Norwich, and have always relied on that fine art background to influence my own designs.
"A report on the project warns that at present the streets trapped within the traffic-logged Newham gyratory system — dubbed “the island” — are scruffy and depressing, yet they will also provide the first impression for millions of visitors to the area in 2012.
“In its current condition, Stratford town centre runs the risk of being overshadowed by adjacent new developments,” warns the report. “The island needs to be more exciting to attract new businesses, residents and visitors.”"
Sri Carmichael, Consumer Affairs Reporter, London Evening Standard.
A model I made for a project in my first year at uni. It was proposed to be a shelter made from steel with glass leaves in Paddington basin.
