Image: Insect Totem for ‘Let’s Meet on the Edge’ by Adrienne Lau, Daniella Levene and Leila Taheri
London Festival of Architecture (LFA) has partnered with Barnet Council for a programme of events taking place within the borough, celebrating architecture and citymaking. These will take place for LFA, which runs throughout June and features a diverse and engaging series of public events and installations, aimed at anyone with an interest in London’s architecture and spaces that surround us.
The Barnet programme will include two commissions to be installed for June 2023: ‘Let’s Meet on the Edge’ and ‘Connecting Colindale: A Flight Path Folly’. Both built projects test new ways to improve the visibility of Barnet’s greenery, connecting people and high streets with green spaces. They hold a significant legacy for LFA and Barnet Council; by activating high streets and green spaces in Edgware and Colindale they aim to drive sustainable improvements to the public realm and promote local ownership and pride amongst residents of Barnet.
‘Let’s Meet on the Edge’ by Adrienne Lau, Daniella Levene and Leila Taheri
Image: Garden City for ‘Let’s Meet on the Edge’ by Adrienne Lau, Daniella Levene and Leila Taheri
Adrienne Lau, Daniella Levene and Leila Taheri won the ‘More Edgware, Less Anywhere’ design competition with their proposal ‘Let’s Meet on the Edge’. The competition launched earlier this year in partnership with Barnet Council, Ballymore and Transport for London. It sought proposals for a new public realm installation in Edgware that tested ideas for ‘re-greening’ the town centre.
Lau, Levene and Taheri are a collective local to Edgware and its surrounding areas, making them part of the community that will interact with this intervention the most. Each team member brings their individual skillset and knowledge to the project, ranging from architecture design to community harvesting and ways to address litter. This project will further harness local talent by employing local artists, and fabricators/makers to be involved in its creation.
‘Let’s Meet on the Edge’ will provide residents and visitors with an alternative map to Edgware for the Festival, this could be used to inform future decisions and improvements in the area.
It is composed of a series of creative installations, starting at Station Road and reaching up to the High Streets. It will be installed by 15 June and in place for 28 days, so make sure you check it out when visiting LFA2023. Excitingly, the installation of ‘Let’s Meet on the Edge’ comes at the point of the 100 year anniversary of Station Road in Edgware. It looks to commemorate the town’s rich history while restoring some of the green space that previously existed.
For this competition, the judging panel consisted of:
- Rosa Rogina, LFA, Director – Chair
- Lucy Atlee, TfL, Quality & Design Manager
- Lucy Devereux, Barnet Council, Town Centre Investment Manager
- Synthia Griffin, Barnet Council, Creative Economy Officer
- Simon Ryan, Projects Director, Ballymore
- Steve Wayne, Local Business Representative
- Ramsey Yassa, Director, Nooma Studio
‘Connecting Colindale: A Flight Path Folly’ by Andre Kong Studio and Wayward
Image: Design Concept for ‘Connecting Colindale: A Flight Path Folly’ by Andre Kong Studio and Wayward
To further address issues of connecting green spaces in Barnet, LFA and the Council have also directly commissioned Andre Kong Studio and Wayward to design and install a solution for connecting Colindale Park with Montrose and Silk Stream. Through its form ‘Connecting Colindale: A Flight Path Folly’ aims to increase local knowledge in an accessible way through a series of small pavilion structures, with planting.
Drawing upon the district’s aviation history and connection to the Royal Air Force the structures connect several meters above ground level in the shape of ‘flight paths’. The team’s design proposal, ‘Connecting Colindale: A Flight Path Folly’, will make green spaces more accessible and visible in the district. These will be gradually filled with a colourful variety of climbing plants making green pathways across the sky.
Rosa Rogina, Director of the London Festival of Architecture, said:
“We’re very happy to be able to facilitate Barnet Council trialling these initiatives which focus on ‘re-greening’ and ‘connecting’ sites in Edgware and Colindale. The Festival has always been a vehicle for meaningful change and impact, so it’s an exciting opportunity for LFA as well as Barnet.
Two fantastic teams have been selected as the winner for ‘More Edgware, Less Anywhere’ and our Colindale commission. Both teams highlight the importance of greenery and community when thinking about town centres and test ideas for the future and we can’t wait to see them installed for LFA2023 in June.”
Cllr Barry Rawlings, Barnet Council Leader, said:
“We want Barnet to be a destination, a place for fun, culture and somewhere we want to enjoy ourselves and invite our friends and family to enjoy themselves too.
“Not only is the London Festival of Architecture helping us do that it is also helping us discover and celebrate the history of our diverse communities.
“The council is committed to creating sustainable thriving town centres and I really hope everyone takes the opportunity to visit and get exploring our brilliant borough, Barnet has so much to offer.”
