North Cross Road sub station - art installation

[James Barber]

Saturday 30 January 3-6pm back room of the Palmerston public consultation about a proposed art installation on the North Cross Road electricity sub station - the big brick wall on the south side near to Lordship Lane.

The scheme if funded by Southwark Council Cleaner, Greener, Safer fund.

I've attached the proposal. Please do have a look.

If you have a view pop along or email me Councillor [email protected] your thoughts.

[Sue]

Bit boring, isn't it.

Sorry artist.

[pablogrande]

it's sub (station) standard

I see you can fill in your own on page 4

[sophiesofa]

Did a member of the cleaner, safer team come up with the design or was it an artist? Sorry I know I should go to the meeting rather than give my view here but I'm going to anyway. ?2800 (the most expensive version) +delivery and installation + photographs/artwork for "vinyl square prints" seems very steep to me. I know it wouldn't look quite as good but for a lot less money you can get that peel off vinyl stuff that should stick to the brick.

Sorry if my post was a bit negative and on the whole I'm all for schemes like this, just not for so much money. I would ask what the concept is for each design but I really should go to the meeting and ask that.

[*Bob*]

pablogrande Wrote:

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> it's sub (station) standard

>

> I see you can fill in your own on page 4

Indeed... hmmm.

Four letters.. four letters.. hmmm..

[tomdhu]

Absolute waste of money.

A hair-brained idea if ever there was one -especialy in these difficult economic times.

There are many more pressing needs to be met - such as repairing the huge number of new pot holes in the roads in E.D. caused by the recent frost damage.

Come up with more of these silly ideas and you certainly won't get many votes next time there is an election.

[i*Rate]

Better than a blank brick wall, but is it art!

Check out the mural at goose green - real paint brushes were used on that.

[MitchK]

How about a mural of Margaret Thatcher?

[Loz]

I'm feeling vaguely artistic today. Well, more vague than artistic, but here's my go.

[sophiesofa]

So this is what they are proposing (obviously neater than my version)? Did the artist approach the cleaner green safer team or was it put out to tender so to speak? Also this is slightly off topic, who funds the cleaner, safer team? I'm just curious and as I said above I think schemes like this are good for the community etc. just not convinced by this one.

[Sue]

Ah, hadn't spotted there were actually three designs, mine just opened at the third one :-$

Well, as Sophisofa says, better than a brick wall, but I'd much rather see a proper mural like the brilliant one which used to be on the wall opposite the side of the EDT, before some phillistine painted it over.

Or even better, why couldn't we have some wires up it and some evergreen climbers? They've done that in Islington to cover up bare walls adjacent to pavements. More in keeping with the Cleaner, Greener, Safer ethos than blooming (or rather, not blooming, hoho) vinyl flowers, I would have thought.

[Mscrawthew]

So this piece of "ART" will spell out NCR just above the road sign that is already there? What a waste, where does the funding for this idea come from? Council Tax? I`m sure there must many more practical things it can go towards? Which part of this proposal is in fact making Dulwich cleaner, greener or safe? Isn`t it about time Southwark residents had a say in where their money is spent?

[puzzled]

this is truly appalling cr@p in several cr@ppy colours. stick to local politics, mr barber, and don't stray into alien territory.

[fractionater]

sorry, but it looks rubbish!

I hope an "Artist" wasn't commissioned to produce this?

[*Bob*]

Won't this sort of suggested artwork ("artwork") which only covers a very small percentage of the wall only serve to draw attention to the fact that it isn't a very nice wall?

Hiding it is a better idea, a la Sue's suggestion. Isn't that quite a sunny wall? Trailing plants dangling from the top which flower in summer or somefink?

[KidKruger]

I think the sun will always travel behind the wall as it's pretty much North facing.

But yeah I was having trouble picturing where the wall is, even though I have walked past it for years.

I figured it was just some building.

Pebbledash it.

[James Barber]

Woah.

Every year the council spends money removing graffiti from this wall. Where art has been installed before at other locations it reduces the incidence of graffiti. The more popular the art the less graffiti. So I'm hopeful this will be self funding with payback of one to two years. So please do come along to the consultation to help ensure the best possible art or green wall or whatever results. Have your say. Help make East Dulwich even better.

Take a look at attached about how environments can increase or decrease crime. Obviously the studies they undertook didn't go further than looking at littering and theft but the principle for more serious crime probably holds.

[first mate]

No thanks. Ghastly waste of money. It's an odd place for a 'work of art'-this looks nothing of the sort. Why not just erect a large perspex box, stick it to the wall and let budding artists display a new work every month?

[5imon]

any art proposal given via the medium of excel spreadsheet should raise eyebrows straight away.

agree with whoever-it-was (sorry can't be asked to scroll up). put some plants on it.

bosh.

[Sue]

JBARBER Wrote:

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> Woah.

> Every year the council spends money removing

> graffiti from this wall.

xxxxxxxx

Really? I pass it virtually every day as I live just off North Cross Road. Don't mean to disbelieve you but I don't recall ever having seen any graffiti on it?

[Sue]

KidKruger Wrote:

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> I think the sun will always travel behind the wall

> as it's pretty much North facing.

>

xxxxxxxxx

It's possible to have plants that will thrive on a North facing wall. The dryness at the bottom and the height of the wall could be a problem though. Maybe we could have a mural of plants!

[Jeremy]

5imon Wrote:

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> any art proposal given via the medium of excel

> spreadsheet should raise eyebrows straight away.

That's exactly what I thought!

I actually really like the idea of some sort of art-type-thing on this wall, but am not really into the suggested format.

[sophiesofa]

I actually really like that wall as it is and I think sometimes (although maybe i dreamt this) stall holders lean their pictures etc on it and it looks lovely. I have an alternative suggestion - put a series of loops/clips etc on the bricks that jut out and have a lost and found in east dulwich wall so when someone finds say a glove or other cheapish item in ED they can attach it to the wall so the owner can potentially find it. I know it's a bit silly but it would serve some kind of purpose and look cool (although i do realise i may be the only person to think it would look good). Who did design it then?

[Sue]

Sorry for three posts running.

I've never graffitied anything in my life, but I'd be tempted to go over these vinyl "flowers" with a spraycan or two :))

Improve the environment? Wreck the environment for anyone with any kind of aesthetic sensibility, more like.

Edited to say:

Reminds me of when I lived near Bromyard (Herefordshire), and the local council put up some truly hideous "sculptures", one lot metal, one lot wood, none of which had any kind of artistic merit and which made me cringe and curse every time I passed them, particularly as presumably my council tax had contributed to their probably enormous cost.

So, who is the Arts Adviser at Southwark Council? I think we should be told.

If it's the person who advised on the brilliant wolf etc near Denmark Hill Station, can't they advise on this as well (because it's pretty certain they haven't :)) )

[computedshorty]

?