Tag Archives: Architecture

ROCHESTER RIVERSIDE – PUBLIC ART IN PRODUCTION – ARTSCAPEOLOGY AT HARDSCAPE ENGLAND – PART 4

My recent trip up to Hardscape at Logistics North near Bolton was a ‘more than hoped for’ brilliant success. This work was conceived with care, skill and emotion. I feel I can honestly say it has been manufactured with care, with enormous skill and equal amounts of emotion. This is what I want to be doing with my time! Achieving beautiful things, creating good work, working with great people. Focussing on craft and natural materials, on age-old skills of hand and eye, fused with technological innovation. I want to work alongside and collaborate with people who are proud of what they do and shout it from the rooftops. –

OK – so with that out of the way, let’s take a look at some of the day’s outstanding work.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: My good friend, the ampersand. ‘WALRUS & NELLIE’. Unit size – 900mm x 300mm x 75mm. More ‘Tales from Rochester Riverside’…

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: Details of ‘ADA & EDITH‘ , 900mm x 300mm x 75mm with an inverted ‘WALRUS & NELLIE’. at top. Unit size – 900mm x 300mm x 75mm.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: Details of ‘ADA & EDITH‘ , 900mm x 300mm x 75mm with a rectangular block of Carlow Limestone crisply laser etched with the name ‘ADA’ & inset into a slab of Porphyry. An inverted ‘WALRUS & NELLIE’ at top, was also sandblasted and inset with text – unit size – 900mm x 300mm x 75mm.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: Eleven of the fifteen units being created up at Hardscape are visible in this image.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: At bottom, ‘DUNLIN A SALTMARSH BIRD’, with water jet cut, inset, laser etched and sandblasted granite – unit size – 1200mm x 400mm x 75mm . At top, an inverted ‘GOOZERS & WATERMEN’ – unit size – 900mm x 300mm x 75mm.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

The beautifully detailed DUNLIN in black Carlow Limestone is laser etched, then water jet cut from its slab and inset into the red Shiraz base slab. The letter ‘D’ is also water jet cut from green Kobra Granite and inset into both the red Shiraz and the Black Carlow, bonded in place with a golden yellow resin specially selected for colour. The letter ‘U’ and other visible text is sandblasted. This is highly skilled and complex work. Looks bloody amazing too…

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: ‘GOOZERS & WATERMEN’ is no less complex, with water jet cut and inset text in Maple Red Granite, inlaid into a Black Carlow Limestone base slab, which is in turn sandblasted with text and laser etched to two depths to create the rippling water effect. See images below.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: The laser etched text ‘Watermen’ on the ‘GOOZERS & Watermen’, panel is wonderfully delivered with a deeper etch to the centre and a delicate lighter etch to the outline. This attention to detail and finish it what makes these bespoke units so outstanding.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: Detail of ‘SHELDUCK’, Laser etched bird motif on black Carlow Limestone, water jet cut-out and inset into a Kobra Green base slab. Letter ‘D’ is also water jet cut and inset. The other letters are sandblasted into the Kobra Green. Unit size – 960mm x 400mm x 75mm

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: Details of ‘SHELDUCK’ & ‘PERENNIAL GLASSWORT’, just two of our 15 tales from Rochester Riverside. ‘SHELDUCK’, is a laser etched bird motif on black Carlow Limestone, water jet cut-out and inset into a Kobra Green base slab with large letter ‘D’ also water jet cut and inset. The other letters are sandblasted into the Kobra Green. Unit size – 960mm x 400mm x 75mm. ‘PERENNIAL GLASSWORT’ is a red Shiraz slab base sandblasted to two depths for text and plant motifs. Royal White & Carlow Limestone letters have also been inset into the surface.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: Detail of some of the letters of ‘PERENNIAL GLASSWORT’ sandblasted into red Shiraz granite.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: ‘MARSH COWS GRAZING’..& other tales from Rochester Riverside’ is Unit No. 8 in a sequence of 15 bespoke granite units along with 9 bespoke cast iron units together create a story about the history and use of this site from Medieval times to the present day. The slabs are robust and heavyweight, adding a physical presence to the narratives they embody. The lives and livelihoods of Rochester people are represented here. These histories live on in stone and cast iron.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: Detail of letters ‘C’ & ‘O’, bot water jet cut and inset from Maple Red Granite and Porphyry respectively and inset into sandblasted Kobra green Granite.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above & Below: ‘BLUE BOAR CREEK’ & ‘GOLDEN SAMPHIRE’, 2 more Tales from Rochester Riverside. Large letter ‘B’ water jet cut from Maple Red Granite, inset into Black Carlow Limestone with laser etched detail.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: ‘GOLDEN SAMPHIRE’ still has the resin bond material smeared over the surface…the cleaned up version can be seen below.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: The large letter ‘S’ is water jet cut from black Carlow Limestone, which has beautiful white shell deposits within its matrix., which are wonderfully contrasting when wet.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above & Below: ’15 BARGES STARTED THE RACE’ & ‘RUSSET BROWN & OCHRE SAILS’. Both bespoke units exhibit great colour contrast and use of stone. Deliberate use of coloured resin bond to fix water jet cut motifs in place adds another dimension.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: Detail of the red Shiraz base slab with sandblasted text into which is inset a 2 colour motif with Maple Red granite and Kobra Green, fixed with a coloured resin bond.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above and Below: ‘THE FIVE BROTHERS’ & ‘SPRITSAIL BARGE’, share a base slab of Porphyry, with sandblasted text and motifs. FIVE BROTHERS has the word ‘FIVE’ inset in water jet cut Maple Red, whilst SPRITSAIL has three letters ‘S’ ‘g’ & ‘L’ inset in Royal White for contrast.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above and images below: ‘COAL – METER HEAVER WHIPPER’ & ‘WILLIAM CORY & SON LTD COAL FACTORS’. 2 Tales from Rochester Riverside…

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: Top slab1200mm x 400mm x 75mm – Crystal Black base slab with sandblasted text & water jet cut and inset Maple Red rectangle with additional inset text in Crystal Black. Bottom slab960mm x 400mm x 75mm – Black Carlow Limestone base slab with sandblasted text and motifs with water jet cut and inset Maple Red granite letters and motifs.

Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Hardscape
Detail: Bespoke public art units for Countryside Homes at Rochester Riverside in production at Hardscape England. Image: Hardscape

Rochester riverside – public art in production – hardscape england – part 2 –

Oh my word…we’re on a roll in production up at Hardscape in Bolton.

These images are hot off the press, as skilled stone specialists at Hardscape focus on the applied detail. Water jet cutting, inlaying, sandblasting and laser etching their way through 15 bespoke units destined to be embedded into the landscape of the new housing development at Rochester Riverside for client Countryside Properties. This work needs to be handled with care and demands high levels of craft skills. Hardscape have been excellent at providing creative collaboration .

Bespoke detailed granite Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Hardscape
Artwork for bespoke detailed granite Public Art Unit ‘WALRUS & NELLIE’ in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Christopher Tipping

Above: This is the ‘&’ from ‘WALRUS & NELLIE’. Water jet cut into a slab of Red Shiraz Granite 900mm x 300mm x75mm. It is awaiting the inlaying of the circle of yellow Amarelo Real Granite. It looks amazing. WALRUS & NELLIE were the names of two portable aggregate conveyors loading stone and cobbles on and off barges at Cory’s Wharf, Blue Boar Hard.

Bespoke detailed granite Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Hardscape

Above: This is the laser etched ‘DUNLIN A SALTMARSH BIRD’, , waiting to be water jet cut from its slab of beautiful Carlow Limestone & inset into a slab of red granite. See image below, where the DUNLIN has been partially cut out from the block in concentric linear patterns. This is a complex unit, with other letters inlaid. Precision is key. These beautifully crafted objects embedded in the landscape, will be a gentle reminder of the natural, social and industrial history of the site.

Bespoke detailed granite Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Hardscape
Detail: ‘DUNLIN A MARSHLAND BIRD’. Bespoke granite water jet cut motifs. Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Hardscape
Artwork for ‘DUNLIN’. This motif is to be Laser Etched onto a Carlow Limestone slab, then cut out and inlaid into a red Shiraz slab. Bespoke detailed granite Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Christopher Tipping
Artwork for bespoke detailed granite Public Art Unit ‘DUNLIN A MARSHLAND BIRD” in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Christopher Tipping
’15 BARGES STARTED THE RACE 1930′. Sandblasting underway with delicate handling of the vinyl stencils required. Bespoke detailed granite Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Hardscape
’15 BARGES STARTED THE RACE 1930′. Sandblasting underway with delicate handling of the vinyl stencils required. Bespoke detailed granite Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Hardscape
Artwork for ’15 BARGES STARTED THE RACE 1930′.Bespoke detailed granite in Kobra Green & Shiraz. Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Christopher Tipping
‘RUSSET BROWN & OCHRE SAILS’. Sandblasting underway with delicate handling of the vinyl stencils required. Bespoke detailed granite Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Hardscape
Artwork for ‘RUSSET BROWN & OCHRE SAILS’.Bespoke detailed granite in Kobra Green, Amarelo Real & Shiraz. Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Christopher Tipping
‘SPRITSAIL BARGES’ & ‘FIVE BROTHERS’. . Sandblasting underway with delicate handling of the vinyl stencils required. Bespoke detailed granite Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Hardscape
‘SPRITSAIL BARGE’ . Detailed sandblasting underway with delicate handling of the vinyl stencils required throughout. Bespoke detailed granite Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Hardscape
Drawing of a Spritsail Barge, used on the River Medway and of a type originally built on our site at Rochester Riverside in the 19th Century. Image: Christopher Tipping
Artwork for ‘SPRITSAIL BARGES’. Bespoke detailed granite in Kobra Green, Amarelo Real & Shiraz. Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Christopher Tipping
Artwork for ‘THE FIVE BROTHERS”. Bespoke detailed granite in Kobra Green, Amarelo Real & Shiraz. Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Christopher Tipping
‘SHELDUCK’. Laser Etching of a Shelduck on a Carlow Limestone slab underway with delicate handling of the detail required. Bespoke detailed granite Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Hardscape

The laser etched image of the Shelduck will now be water jet cut out of the Carlow slab and the motif inlaid into a slab of Kobra Green Granite, which has the shape of the bird already cut into the surface.

Interesting to note also that the Carlow Limestone has beautiful fossil shells embedded. Also note that these are not my feet, they probably belong to Pedro, who is overseeing and also working on my project. Without skilled people like this, I would be lost !

Artwork for ‘SHELDUCK’. This motif is to be Laser Etched onto a Carlow Limestone slab. Bespoke detailed granite Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Christopher Tipping
Artwork for ‘SHELDUCK’. Bespoke detailed granite in Kobra Green & Carlow Limestone. Public Art Units in production at Hardscape England, Logistics North, Bolton for Rochester Riverside and client Countryside Properties. Image: Christopher Tipping

ROCHESTER RIVERSIDE IN PRODUCTION – HARDSCAPE ENGLAND

Mid-September and it was up to Hardscape, Bolton to see progress on the manufacture of the bespoke inlaid granite paving units. As ever, the works are of a really high quality and Hardscape are always keen to progress & test their creative collaborations.

15 granite units are in production. These vary in size from 1200mm x 400mm x 75mm to 900mm x 300mm x 75mm and are destined to be installed at the thresholds to housing & apartment blocks at Rochester.

15 granite paving units for Rochester Riverside with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Christopher Tipping

This work is achieved via water jet cutting and inlay techniques using colour matched resin to bond granite elements in place. Text and other motifs are also sandblasted at varying depths.

1 of 15 granite paving units for Rochester Riverside with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: 1 of 15 granite paving units for Rochester Riverside with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: 1 of 15 granite paving units in production at Hardscape for Rochester Riverside – with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Hardscape
Detail: 1 of 15 granite paving units in production at Hardscape for Rochester Riverside – with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Hardscape
Detail: 1 of 15 granite paving units in production at Hardscape for Rochester Riverside – with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Hardscape
Detail: 1 of 15 granite paving units in production at Hardscape for Rochester Riverside – with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Hardscape
Detail: 1 of 15 granite paving units in production at Hardscape for Rochester Riverside – with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Hardscape
Detail: 1 of 15 granite paving units for Rochester Riverside with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: 1 of 15 granite paving units for Rochester Riverside with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: 1 of 15 granite paving units for Rochester Riverside with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Water jet cutting paths for 1 of 15 granite paving units for Rochester Riverside with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Water jet cutting paths for 1 of 15 granite paving units for Rochester Riverside with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Water jet cutting paths cleaned up for 1 of 15 granite paving units for Rochester Riverside with inlaid and sandblasted details. Image: Christopher Tipping

Rochester Riverside in production – HARGREAVES FOUNDRY

In August all was ready for the casting of the iron units and off I eagerly trotted on the train up to Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax to be present during a famous ‘Casting Thursday’! – I have been up to Hargreaves only once before and Andrew Knight, Foundry & Patternshop Manager showed me around the factory at that time. Even though this was impressive, (& it is !) it couldn’t match being present to witness my own work being cast. It is such a physical, visceral process, fully hands on and dangerous with it. The skill & craft is astonishing and it is this legacy of making, which Hargreaves has in bucketfuls, that I wanted to design into the public art work for Rochester.

Rochester Riverside. Hargreaves Foundry. Image: Christopher Tipping
Artwork for Units 1 – 5 for cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Some units were cast twice. Image: Christopher Tipping
Original tooled pattern by Arthur Jackson after casting at Hargreaves. Image: Christopher Tipping
Details of EASM 3D files used by Solidworks for cnc tooled pattern manufacture at Arthur Jackson & Co Ltd, Halifax. Image: Arthur Jackson
Details of EASM 3D files used by Solidworks for cnc tooled pattern manufacture at Arthur Jackson & Co Ltd, Halifax. Image: Arthur Jackson
Elements of cnc tooling & pattern production at Arthur Jackson & Co Ltd in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping
Elements of cnc tooling & pattern production at Arthur Jackson & Co Ltd in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping
Elements of cnc tooling & pattern production at Arthur Jackson & Co Ltd in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping
Original tooled patterns by Arthur Jackson after use in casting at Hargreaves. Image: Christopher Tipping

Nine cast iron units have now been made, from 5 original cnc tooled patterns manufactured to my designs by Arthur Jackson & Co Ltd, Halifax. These patterns, cnc tooled from a type of resin block are used to prepare the resin sand mould boxes used in the final casting process. The cast units are then hand finished through grinding and polishing methods.

Elements of cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping
Elements of cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping

Individual one ton iron weights are used to secure the moulds during casting, such are the pressures of heat during the process. The moulds are constructed from a resin infused black sand, which has been compacted around the master pattern, which is then removed.

Elements of cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping
Elements of cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping

What I can’t convey here is the noise, heat, smell & excitement of this process during the critical stages of casting. The experience is vivid and visceral. I am watching something being made which could last for hundreds of years.

Elements of cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping
Elements of cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping
Elements of cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping
Elements of cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping
Elements of cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping
Elements of cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping
Elements of cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping
Elements of cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping

The units above and below have now been treated with Nitric Acid to prevent rusting through oxidation. The cast iron is almost black and the relief jumps out very cleanly.

Elements of cast iron production at Hargreaves Foundry in Halifax. Image: Christopher Tipping

Official Opening – PART ONE

Architectural Glass Artwork in the Hydrotherapy Pool. RNHRD & Brownsword Therapies Centre, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Architectural Glass Artwork in the Hydrotherapy Pool. RNHRD & Brownsword Therapies Centre, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping


Tuesday 22nd October 2019 – Today was the Official Opening of the RNHRD & Brownsword Therapies Centre at the RUH, Bath. I was invited to attend the event and to be presented to HRH Duchess of Cornwall who gracefully performed the honours.

Formalities aside, it was a great day and I was very touched and proud to have been involved in the project . The weather was pretty glorious on the day – so the glazing appeared at its very best., reflecting perfectly off the pool surface and creating the most beautiful backdrop for the day’s events. Positive comments all round was a great sign that the project had been a collaborative & creative success. A massive thanks to Art at the Heart and especially to the efforts of Hetty Dupays, Art and Design Manager and her brilliant team.

We made the front page of the Bath Chronicle ! Left to Right – Suzanne Rastrick, Hetty Dupays, me, Gemma Pugh and HRH Duchess of Cornwall. Image: Artur Lesniak for the Bath Chronicle
Left to Right - Suzanne Rastrick, Hetty Dupays, me, HRH Duchess of Cornwall, Gemma Pugh. Image: RUH
Left to Right – Suzanne Rastrick, Hetty Dupays, me, HRH Duchess of Cornwall, Gemma Pugh. Image: RUH
Twitter feed from Art at the Heart of the RUH, represented the events of the day. Image: Art at the Heart, RUH
Twitter feed from Art at the Heart of the RUH, represented the events of the day. Image: Art at the Heart, RUH
…and here I am Photo-Bombing. Right to Left: Suzanne Rastrick, (me), Gina Sargeant & Gemma Pugh. Image: RUH
Detail: East Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: Reflections of the East Screen in the Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
East Glazing Screen, Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
East Glazing Screen, Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
North (Courtyard) Glazing Screen, Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
North (Courtyard) Glazing Screen, Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
North (Courtyard) Glazing Screen, Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
North (Courtyard) Glazing Screen, Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping

Of course, none of this would have been possible without a brilliant and supportive project team, including manufacturers and creative collaborators Proto Glass Studios and Project Architects IBI Group, working under the guidance and partnership of Kier Construction and the RUH.

Detail: East Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: East Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: East Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: East Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: North (Courtyard)  Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: North (Courtyard) Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: North (Courtyard)  Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: North (Courtyard) Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: North (Courtyard)  Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: North (Courtyard) Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: North (Courtyard)  Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: North (Courtyard) Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: North (Courtyard)  Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping
Detail: North (Courtyard) Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH, Bath. Image: Christopher Tipping

Royal College of Art – Terrazzo Floor

‘Celebrating Pattern in London’s Architecture’.

‘Frieze collaborates with Tate Britain, the National Gallery, RCA, Sketch Gallery and ICA on the 2017 marketing campaign. From contemporary concepts to Renaissance painting, we have worked with important cultural institutions to create the campaigns for Frieze London and Frieze Masters 2017. Showcasing striking design and beautiful floors around London. Photography by Luke Hayes with Art Direction by Amy Preston’. Frieze London 2017.

Royal College of Art, Terrazzo & Marble floor installed 1987. Artist: Christopher Tipping. Image: Luke Hayes 2017

 

I was delighted to see my work featured in the Frieze London 2017 Marketing Campaign. My in-situ polychrome terrazzo and cut marble floor was quietly celebrating it’s 30th Anniversary in 2017, since it was commissioned by the RCA for the main entrance and reception of the new Darwin Building in 1987. The work was manufactured and installed by Diespeker & Co. I worked closely throughout in collaboration with Diespeker’s and the RCA. As stated – I was surprised and delighted to see it featured again in this way.

I recently made contact with the Photographer Luke Hayes to enquire about any other images he may have of the work, which didn’t make the original campaign. He has generously allowed me access to these images, which I reproduce here with his kind permission. I have very few images myself – and no digital images – and appear to have very little by way of documentation. I graduated from the RCA in 1985 and I think I was commissioned whilst I was still a post-grad student in Ceramics. This makes some sense, as the design for the floor was very much an extension of the work I was doing in ceramics, which was focussed on Architectural form and decoration. I was pretty amazed to see it was still in such good condition. Terrazzo is an amazing material and I have used it-  rather sporadically I admit – throughout my career and had the pleasure of working alongside some amazing craftspeople at Diespeker’s and Pallam Precast,  now part of Quality Marble.

 

Royal College of Art 1987. Darwin Building. Jay Mews Entrance. Terrazzo Floor. Artist: Christopher Tipping. Image: Unknown

 

Above: From what I can recall, this  (poor quality) image was taken just after the final grinding & completion of the floor by Diespeker’s. It hadn’t been cleaned or polished and was very dusty – just like me in the image.

 

Royal College of Art, London. Detail: Terrazzo & Marble floor installed 1987. Artist: Christopher Tipping. Image: Luke Hayes 2017

 

Royal College of Art, London. Detail: Terrazzo & Marble floor installed 1987. Artist: Christopher Tipping. Image: Luke Hayes 2017

 

Royal College of Art, London. Detail: Terrazzo & Marble floor installed 1987. Artist: Christopher Tipping. Image: Luke Hayes 2017 (Cropped Image 2019)

 

Royal College of Art, London. Detail: Terrazzo & Marble floor installed 1987. Artist: Christopher Tipping. Image: Luke Hayes 2017

 

Royal College of Art, London. Detail: Terrazzo & Marble floor installed 1987. Artist: Christopher Tipping. Image: Luke Hayes 2017

 

Royal College of Art, London. Detail: Terrazzo & Marble floor installed 1987. Artist: Christopher Tipping. Image: Luke Hayes 2017 (Cropped Image 2019)

 

Royal College of Art, London. Detail: Terrazzo & Marble floor installed 1987. Artist: Christopher Tipping. Image: Luke Hayes 2017

 

Royal College of Art, London. Detail: Terrazzo & Marble floor installed 1987. Artist: Christopher Tipping. Image: Luke Hayes 2017

 

Between 1985 / 87 during the delivery of this project, I had no access to digital processes or computers – although they had recently started to appear at the RCA. The original artwork was hand drawn and painted in gouache. Templates for the timber formwork were first drawn up full scale and processed in the RCA’s timber workshops on Jay Mews. I suppose what it did, was reinforce the hand made and craft process associated with the manufacture of the work. I do remember sanding off the tip of one of my fingers in the workshop. I had so little money in those post student days, that I also recall walking all the way from Terrazzo manufacturer Diespeker’s old premises at Diespeker Wharf Wharf, Islington, back to my old studio at Loughborough Junction on Coldharbour Lane, South London, carrying a pile of terrazzo samples.

 

Below: Really interesting to work briefly with Luke’s images to re-imagine some new designs for the same floor. Digital processes we have instantly available in minutes today would have taken me days to produce similar painted patterns in 1987.

 

RCA Re-imagined artwork for terrazzo & marble floor 2019 from original image by Photographer: Luke Hayes 2017

 

RCA Re-imagined artwork for terrazzo & marble floor 2019 from original image by Photographer: Luke Hayes 2017

 

RCA Re-imagined artwork for terrazzo & marble floor 2019 from original image by Photographer: Luke Hayes 2017

 

RCA Re-imagined artwork for terrazzo & marble floor 2019 from original image by Photographer: Luke Hayes 2017

 

RCA Re-imagined artwork for terrazzo & marble floor 2019 from original image by Photographer: Luke Hayes 2017

 

 

 

 

 

Installed !

They are finally in place! The architectural glazed screens have now been installed in the Hydrotherapy Pool room at the new RNHRD & Therapies Centre at the RUH in Bath.

 

Detail of the East Glazing Screen, seen from behind the interior scaffolding. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

 

On Tuesday 19th March 2019, the screens were carefully installed by SEH Commercial. The East Screen was installed in the morning and the North Screen in the afternoon. Proto Glass Studios delivered the 18 sealed units – a total of 42 sqm of decorated glass –  in two runs from their premises in Pewsey, Wiltshire. I couldn’t be there, which was a real disappointment, but the process was documented by a number of people on site. I am showing their images here.

There is still a fair amount of work to be done in finishing the new buildings, both inside & out, so for now and the foreseeable future at least, the glass will be covered by boards & protected. These are the last images we will see before the building is officially opened.

This project has been a great journey to make in collaboration with a wonderful project team. Hetty Dupays, director of Art at the Heart of the RUH who commissioned the work has been a most supportive project manager. Also a big thanks to Gina Sargeant, Head of Therapies & Clinical Site, whose direct and pragmatic approach was balanced by her humour. I could not have delivered this artwork without the input and advocacy of both these brilliant people. A massive thanks to all staff and patients from both the RUH and RHNRD (The Min), IBI Group Architects & Main Contractor Kier who collaborated throughout, and who offered their support and experience.

 

Detail of the East Glazing Screen, seen from behind the interior scaffolding. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

 

Detail: External elevation of the North Screen from the Courtyard Garden. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

 

External elevation of the North Screen from the Courtyard Garden. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

 

Detail of the topmost panels of the East Glazing Screen, seen from behind the interior scaffolding. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

 

Detail of the topmost panels of the East Glazing Screen, seen from behind the interior scaffolding. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

 

Detail of the lower panels of the East Glazing Screen, seen from behind the interior scaffolding. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

 

Detail of the topmost panels of the East Glazing Screen, seen from behind the interior scaffolding. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

 

Detail: External elevation of the North Screen from the Courtyard Garden. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

 

Detail: External elevation of the North Screen from the Courtyard Garden. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

 

Hetty Dupays standing in front of the East Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Gina Sargeant

 

Hetty Dupays standing in front of the East Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Gina Sargeant

 

The external wall elevations and frames are still in progress, as are the interiors and the Screens will be padded out and boarded up from today, to protect them during the remaining works on site.

 

SEH Commercial & Kier were responsible for the installation of the Screens. Stepladder & install team in front of the East Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

 

External elevations of the East Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

 

Detail: External elevation of the East Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

 

Detail: External elevation of the East Screen. Hydrotherapy Pool, RUH. Image: Hetty Dupays

Salisbury District Hospital 2006

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Levels 1 & 2 colour way-finding. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern

I am always trying to play catch-up with projects I completed prior to having any online platforms. Here we are, almost 13 years since its completion and installation and I have finally managed to track down a great set of images, which were commissioned by Tarkett Flooring (actually it was Tarkett Marley back in 2006). The images were originally commissioned by PR Firm Mainspring from photographer Ian Blantern of Blantern & Davis Photography.

Ian Blantern retrieved the images from his archive, for which I am really grateful.

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Images Screenshot. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern

In 2004 I was commissioned by Peter Ursem, a former director of the Artcare Team at Salisbury District Hospital to collaborate with project team Architects, Chapman Taylor and Contractor Gleeson. The brief was to create bespoke flooring installations throughout the four levels of the new building, combined with creating interior colour schemes to assist in wayfinding and identity. I collaborated closely with Tarkett Marley Floors throughout the design and manufacturing period on sonic cutting and installation methods.

Salisbury District Hospital Phase Two 2006 Chapman Taylor Architects. Project Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern

“The planned move of services from the older southern end of the Salisbury District Hospital site to a new modern purpose built facility took place in May 2006. The new building which was designed using the views of local people and staff houses the regional burns service, elderly care and orthopaedic wards. It also has an outpatient department with plastic surgery, maxillo facial outpatients, laser treatment centre and therapy services. This was the largest development seen on this site since Phase One of the hospital was built in1993 and means that these services now have natural links with the acute and diagnostic services in the newer part of the hospital. The new burns accommodation is situated on level four and has its own dedicated operating theatre. It is located near the Intensive Therapy Unit so that it can access critical care support for people with serious burn injuries. Orthopaedics has its own purpose built accommodation and this is located on level four of the new building close to main theatres. Plastic surgery and maxillo facial outpatients has its own department on level three, so that it links in with general outpatient and diagnostic services on the same level in the existing hospital. Medical and elderly wards are situated on level two, with two elderly care wards taking the vacated ward areas in the existing hospital that are next to the Nunton Unit, which provides physiotherapy. In designing the new building, the aim was to maximise natural daylight and ensure that patients in ward areas can enjoy excellent views across the Wiltshire countryside”. Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust

 

The designs were inspired by abstract forms in the Wiltshire landscape – ephemeral and or suggested elements as seen from the Hospital. This included ancient and historic man-made stone circles at Avebury and Sarum, crop circles, dew ponds, Fovant Badges, plough lines and field patterns. I also looked at Downton lace making, the architecture and decoration of Salisbury Cathedral and the flora and fauna of a chalk and limestone landscape. Engagement with staff and patients was also undertaken. The installations were made at major node points such as nurses stations, waiting areas, key vistas and in the window seating areas of the 4-bed bays. The patterns break up the generous expanses of floor, providing an element of surprise and distraction for patients and visitors alike. All floors share a limited catalogue of motifs, but these are expressed via individual and distinct colour palettes on each level. Levels 1 & 2 share an set of earth and terracotta tones representing chalk marls and ploughed fields. Level 3 uses shades of green reminiscent of summer and farmland and woods, whilst on Level 4, blues and lilac colours reflect shifting skyscapes.

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Material & colour-ways sample boards. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

What am I proposing?          

Looking at Wiltshire: A patchwork of pattern, texture and light

Designs inspired by man-made forms in the landscape –

Earthworks: Avebury – Old Sarum – Silbury Hill

Crop Circles

Dew Ponds

Chalk Drawings: Wiltshire Horses and Fovant Badges

Ploughing patterns

Field patterns

Designs inspired by local history, industry and architecture –

Downton Lace

Salisbury Cathedral

Medieval Ceramic Tiles

Romano British Mosaics

Celtic Patterns

Designs inspired by the unseen & ephemeral in the landscape –

The geology of Wiltshire

Fossils of the Chalk Downland of Wiltshire

Associated Flora and Fauna: Horseshoe Vetch and Adonis Blue

Fleeting expressions of light in shadow play

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Level 4 colour way-finding. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern Photography

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Levels 1 & 2 colour way-finding – inspection during installation. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Level 3 colour way-finding. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern Photography

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Level 3 colour way-finding. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern Photography

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Level 3 colour way-finding – inspection during installation. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Levels 1 & 2 colour way-finding. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern Photography

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Material & colour-ways sample boxes in progress at Clockwork Studios. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Research images taken at Salisbury District Hospital. Image: Christopher Tipping

 

Research images taken at Salisbury Cathedral 2004. Image: Christopher Tipping

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Material & colour-ways sample box for Levels 1 & 2 in progress at Clockwork Studios. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Material & colour-ways sample box for Level 4 Burns Unit in progress at Clockwork Studios. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Research images taken at Salisbury Cathedral 2004. Image: Christopher Tipping

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Level 4 colour way-finding – inspection & cleaning underway during installation. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Level 4 colour way-finding – inspection & cleaning during installation. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Production Drawings of bespoke motifs by Tarkett Marley. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Production Drawings of bespoke motifs by Tarkett Marley. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Waste Materials from manufacturing at Tarkett Marley factory, Lenham, Kent. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Production Drawings of bespoke motifs by Tarkett Marley. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Level 4 colour way-finding. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern Photography

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Levels 1 & 2 colour way-finding. Sample Panel by Tarkett Marley. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

 

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Level 4 colour way-finding. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern Photography

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Level 3 colour way-finding. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern Photography

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Level 4 colour way-finding. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern Photography

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Levels 1 & 2 colour way-finding. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern Photography

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Typical Production Plan Drawing of bespoke motifs & sites for Levels 1 & 2 by Tarkett Marley. Artist Christopher Tipping.

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Detail: Typical Production Plan Drawing of bespoke motifs & sites for Levels 1 & 2 by Tarkett Marley. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Typical Production Plan Drawing of bespoke motifs & sites for Level 4 by Tarkett Marley. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Typical Production Plan Drawing of bespoke motifs & sites for Level 3 by Tarkett Marley. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Level 4 colour way-finding – inspection during installation. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

2005, design stage consultation event. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

2005, design stage consultation event. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Production Drawings of bespoke motifs for Levels 1 & 2 by Tarkett Marley. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Level 3 colour way-finding. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern Photography

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Levels 1 & 2 colour way-finding. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern Photography

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Levels 1 & 2 colour way-finding. Artist Christopher Tipping. Image: Ian Blantern Photography

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006. Material & colour-ways sample boxes in progress at Clockwork Studios. Artist Christopher Tipping.

Research images taken at Salisbury District Hospital. Image: Christopher Tipping

 

Research images taken at Salisbury District Hospital. Image: Christopher Tipping

 

Salisbury District Hospital 2006, Level 4 colour way-finding. Sample Panel by Tarkett Marley. Artist Christopher Tipping.

 

Decoration for the Hydrotherapy Pool Glazing …hello deer !

I imagined an abstracted landscape as a positive  way of encapsulating all that has inspired my commission for the Hydrotherapy Pool glazed screens. (There are approximately 46sqm of glass combined in both screens).

Both Hospital sites were originally set in and adjacent to open fields and expansive views of countryside. Easy to imagine then how beneficial this must have been to those patients and staff who experienced this.

It is now commonly understood that exposure to natural spaces, planting and nature within medical and healing environments is of great benefit and assists in the recovery and positive experience of patients and staff alike.

Deer with Roman pattern. Research Images developing patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher Tipping

This glass landscape is populated with recognisable motifs, such as flowers, deer and trees, woven together with abstract forms and repeating patterns. Local landmarks such as Kelston Round Hill also feature, as do references to the architectural decoration and built heritage of The Min and its archaic Roman Mosaics. However, the most visible motif perhaps is water, and more explicitly, the gestural movement of water as shaped by those taking treatment in the Hydrotherapy Pool. A shape made in water informed by the movement of a hand or leg. Abstractions of steam or mist appear to hover in this landscape. Water is contained within a bowl or pool. An elegant but dynamic abstract splash of water drifts across the whole of the East Screen. The connection to hot springs and flowing waters has shaped Bath into the World Heritage Site we see today.

I have been so impressed with the positivity and care of the medical staff delivering these services, I wanted to evoke this caring nature with visual clues within the work, which may express this. Growing flowers and creating gardens is a nurturing vocation. Water is an elemental part of this.  Historically, The Min was built upon the grounds of the first Theatre in Bath, and the later extension built upon the formal gardens of Rectory House. Adjacent to the ChapeI at the rear of The Min is a small but lovely garden. Also in Bath, Gibbes Garden was a 15th Century apothecary garden growing medicinal herbs.

Combe Park had formerly been the site of the Bath War Hospital built in 1916 to provide beds and medical services for WW1 Casualties. There was a small pond and a stream ran nearby. Patients and staff were encouraged to grow and maintain flower gardens & were rewarded with prizes.

I was offered a session at the Hydrotherapy Pool at The Min as a way of understanding a little more about the impact of water as a treatment. I am not a patient – I cannot experience this as many do on a daily basis, not I am I in the process of healing or tempering acute conditions. Patients vary from those with lifelong conditions, such as Ankylosing spondylitis and others suffering from chronic pain, to physiotherapy in the pool following operations or broken limbs.  All I can aim for is to add to the interior space with something visually interesting / beautiful / stimulating to this brand-new environment, which makes the experience for both staff and patients a pleasant and perhaps an intriguing one.

The following images make up the final draft artwork approved for production by the RUH. The Magenta/Pink colour is used to indicate clear/fully transparent glazing with no artwork. White represents sandblasting and / or Ceramic Etch techniques. All other colour is created using Screen-printed Ceramic Colour fired onto the glass. The artwork is applied to the two inner faces of a double glazed sealed unit. There is a subtle overlaying of motifs, which means that the artwork is slightly different as seen from the interior, than the exterior. These drafts are created initially via hand drawing and assembled and finished in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator.

Final Master Draft for the North and East Glazed Screens. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Research Images developing patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Research Images developing colour & patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Final Master Draft for the East Glazed Screen. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Final Master Draft for the East Glazed Screen detail 4. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Final Master Draft for the East Glazed Screen detail 3. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Iris drawing. Research drawings developing motifs and patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Final Master Draft for the East Glazed Screen detail 2. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Draft Donkey with pattern. Research Images developing motifs & patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Orange. Research Images developing motifs, patterns & colours from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Final Master Draft for the North Glazed Screen detail 1. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Final Master Draft for the North Glazed Screen detail 2. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Final Master Draft for the North Glazed Screen detail 3. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Draft 16 Foil shape with Foxgloves. Research drawings developing motifs & patterns from research at the RNHRD, including The Min Chapel. Artist: Christopher Tipping

Flower Bowl Images from Rockpanel

My great collaborators at Rockpanel have just sent me a new set of images they have commissioned of The Flower Bowl Entertainment Centre at Brock, near Preston.

The wonderful images are by Daniel James Alive Photography.

I was commissioned by Guy Topping MD of Barton Grange Garden Centre to create the cnc routed artwork for the external Rockpanel rainscreen facade.

The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel

The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel

Rockpanel put me in touch with Barton Grange following our work with HLM Architects on their ‘Heart of the Campus’ project for Sheffield Hallam University. I was then commissioned by Guy Topping to design artwork to be integrated into the exterior cladding, which wraps the façade of the Flower Bowl. The client was keen to reference its long association with plants, trees and especially flowers. The artwork is therefore a celebration of flowers inspired not so much by botanical accuracy, rather their abstract super graphic nature at large scale, exploding like fireworks in celebration across the elevations of the building.

The façades are specified in Rockpanel Colours in RAL 7022, routed to reveal the design, which was created in collaboration with Mark Durey at The Cutting Room, Huntingdon, using Alphacam CAD CAM software.

The translation of my artwork to the end product is anything but straightforward. Mark’s intimate knowledge of the technology, combined with his experience in creative problem solving, brings an entirely bespoke method to creating the final installation. The final outcome is exceptionally accurate.

The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel

The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel

The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel

The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel

The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel

‘The Flower Bowl is an innovative multi-use leisure destination, which sits alongside Barton Grange Garden Centre and Barton Grange Marina at Brock, near Preston in Lancashire. 

The Topping family run the Barton Grange Group which owns and operate the Garden Centre, Marina and Flower Bowl and whose history spans back more than seventy years. The company runs several award-winning garden centres, a 4 star hotel and a widely respected and successful landscape contracting firm.

The architects for the project were Worthington Ashworth Jackson Walker (WAJW). They faced several challenges in accommodating the large number of disparate facilities with potentially conflicting requirements in close proximity. WAJW Architect Alistair Williams, “The single greatest challenge was to master the complex geometry of the vast, undulating roof and to detail this in such a way that it could be accurately replicated on site.” The 4200m2 single storey structure now features that gently undulating grass roof that, it is hoped, will eventually have sheep grazing on it’. Rockpanel

The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel

The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel

The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel

The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel

The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel

The Flower Bowl cnc routed facade artwork. Image: Daniel James Alive Photography by kind permission of Rockpanel