Edgware Station is now adorned with captivating sculptures as part of a new design project by The Edgy Collective.
This local team of designers and storytellers has unveiled three installations aimed at rekindling the connection between nature, community, and urban spaces. The project emphasises the use of reclaimed materials, promoting sustainability and circularity.
According to Leila Taheri, the Creative Director of Edgy Collective, the urban development in Edgware has left nature and history disconnected from the community. She states, “Nature – of which we are a part – has become disenfranchised from Edgware. Station Road, its beating heart, is a grey mass of concrete, tarmac, fences, and litter. History has been lost in Edgware’s urban development. Communities are visible, but also hidden and disconnected.”
In response to this problem, The Edgy Collective has created three unique installations, each centred around a distinct theme. The designs incorporate natural and reclaimed materials, emphasizing the importance of reusing resources and enhancing sustainability. The installations invite visitors to engage with nature and their surroundings in innovative ways.
The first installation, named “Create a Buzz at ‘Edge’ Station,” celebrates the unsung heroes of nature, the insects, whose populations are rapidly declining. This larger-than-life totem to invertebrates not only provides a habitat for them but also serves as an alternative wayfinding marker outside Edgware Station.
The second installation, called “Plant Life at Garden City,” breathes new life into a previously lifeless area, transforming it into a vibrant garden city. Especially created planters bring colour and vitality, offering opportunities for play and rest.
Lastly, “Break Bread at Bakery Path” welcomes visitors with warm leavened thoughts, greenery, and place-poetry. This installation directs visitors to a nearby green and blue space while providing an ideal spot for a mossy selfie.
The Edgy Collective recognises the environmental impact of construction materials and aims to make a change. With an estimated 60% of reclaimed materials utilized in the project, the team strives to minimize waste and maximize reuse. Their long-term plan involves rehoming all structures, targeting a 0% waste outcome.
Adrienne Lau, Edgy Collective Architect, noted the need for a shift in design and construction practices due to climate breakdown. Lau states, “Through this project, we aim to show how creative design can exist in synergy with material reuse and uphold sustainability.”
The Victorian Douglas Fir beams and pine joists used in the project were reclaimed from century-old army barracks, repurposed as outdoor furniture in Garden City, and incorporated into the Bakery Path portal arch. The team also incorporated used plywood hoarding boards, obtained from a local construction site, into the insect totem at the centre of Edgware station’s arrival roundabout.
Various found objects, including bamboo poles, metal pipes, century-old ceramic electric cable insulators, and old instruments, will form an analogue sound instrument in the Garden City music closet. Even packaging materials like Hessian and Jute sacks, recovered from coffee bean packaging worldwide, are repurposed as container planters.
The Edgy Collective’s commitment to sustainability extends beyond the project itself. They plan to distribute the design interventions to the local community after the festival, ensuring ongoing use and minimising waste.
Daniella Levene, an Environmentalist from the Edgy Collective, explains the influence of community, history, and space in the project. Levene states, “These designs would only make sense in Edgware – they are hyper-local and hyper-contextual.”
Catch the installations and events in Edgware from 15th June to 13th July 2023. For more information check out – https://www.londonfestivalofarchitecture.org/event/lets-meet-on-the-edge
