Spencer Finch's public art proposal on view at Whitechapel Gallery
28 February 2018
The proposal and preparatory work for Spencer Finch's new commission at Paddington's Elizabeth line station in London will go on view at Whitechapel Gallery from 13 March. The project is part of the Crossrail Art Programme, which has been developed by Future City and is funded by Heathrow and the City of London Corporation. The unprecedented program will significantly enrich the presence of contemporary art in the capital's public space. This exhibition will function as the first overview of the Crossrail artworks, set to be unveiled across London from December 2018.Finch's A Cloud Index is a cloudscape that has been printed onto the 120-metre long canopy of the new Elizabeth line station, making it one of the largest, permanent art works ever created in London. The artist has hand-drawn 60 original pastels that combine to create a unique collage of clouds, that when printed onto the transparent canopy will appear to change according to the light, weather and time of day. The canopy, which appears to float above the platforms 25 metres below ground, is a steel grid that holds 220 bespoke glass panels, each one weighing over a tonne. The hand drawn scene will be ‘painted’ onto 180 of the panels using ceramic dot matrix printing that not only creates the image but also reduces solar glare into the station.
Given its unprecedented length, visitors will see the artwork in a new way depending on what way they enter, leave or move through the station. An estimated 25 million passengers a year are expected to use Paddington Elizabeth line station when services through central London begin in December 2018.
