No. 1 Kingsway
London
Joseph Harrington was commissioned to produce a sculptural glass artwork for display within the façade windows of the development at No.1 Kingsway, at the junction of Aldwych and Kingsway in central London.
In 1905 the Aldwych and Kingsway scheme was London County Council’s first large urban improvement scheme in central London. It signalled the council’s vision of London as a modern city of tree-lined boulevards, office blocks and free-flowing traffic, and represents the only attempt in London to recreate the grand avenues by Hausmann in Paris.
In his work Joseph uses a method known as the ‘lost ice process’ which involves sculpting blocks of ice using salt erosion. A mould is then taken, recording the form in transition, before it is cast into glass. The finished sculpture captures the natural, fleeting effects of salt erosion in permanent solid glass form.
The work consists of three large glass sculptures mounted on a sandstone base so that the whole artwork is visible through the window. The artist worked with interior designers David Collins Studio to ensure that the work has an impact from the street and also from within the building.
The design concept for the artwork derives from the use of temporary supports and buttresses during the building renovation. Joseph’s sculpture highlights this transience and encapsulates this sense of transformation, or a moment frozen in time.
Suzanne project managed the implementation of this project on behalf of Ginkgo Projects.