FABRIC FROM FIVE CONTINENTS
CORE IDEA
Once Rochdale sent textiles out across the world; today they come from across the world to Rochdale. An echo of the past and a nod to Rochdale’s multi-cultural present.
On site at Rochdale Town Hall. Adrian Wright and Stephen Broadbent installed the ceramic units for the seats. The landscape is coming together - a full transformation for what was a carpark.
CONTEXT
The refurbishing of Rochdale Town Hall and its surrounding area. This included the planting of five trees, to be encircled by themed seating. According to Pevsner, Rochdale Town Hall is the premier example of Gothic Revival civic architecture in the country. It stands very proud and was built with the proceeds of Rochdale’s flourishing 19th-century textile business, which at that time exported its wares across the world. But that was long ago. The time had come for a facelift and the Council were keen to inject new life into the building and its surroundings. An artwork outside such an important building, however, would have to say something about the town, then and now.
VISITING THE SEATS
We have enjoyed some sunshine as the seasons change - and we took this opportunity for a good afternoon of people watching alongside a cold beer from The Olde Courtyard.
The dappled shade from the trees, and the tactile, colourful seats offered a playground to explore. Even in the heat wave the seats were comfortable to sit on and the patterns sparked conversations.
ROCHDALE REGENERATION
We are a small part of a much wider regeneration, so many exciting projects being realised surrounding the restoration of the Town Hall - capturing story-telling, history and engaging communities. These interventions celebrate the area - and the notion of placemaking.
“Gillespies designed the new town square, which is being transformed to complement the lottery-supported restoration of the Grade I listed Rochdale Town Hall.
The area has been transformed from a car park into a high-quality public plaza, with beautiful benches designed by Broadbent Studio and created by Darwen Terracotta, offering visitors a chance to meet and relax under the new trees.”
DETAILS
Not all the colours representing the continents are accessible yet - they are hiding behing the hoardings. We have - Pink for Africa, Sky blue for Europe, Greeny brown / browny green for Oceania, Purply midnight blue for Asia and Sandy gold for Americas. Stories for all the patterns to follow soon.