Salford's Health Investment for Tomorrow
5 Projects that are changing the face of health services in Salford
Gateway Artwork
Click thumbnails below for a larger view
Pendleton
Artists Rob Vale and Stella Corrall are working together to create an artwork for the Pendleton centre which will accommodate children’s health services.
The Artists visited the library and health centre, schools and colleges and ran create workshops with local groups creating moving images, animations and plastic collages and sculptures to discuss ideas and give people the opportunity to learn about the how the artwork will be created.
They wanted to create an artwork that would be relevant and inspiring to children and adults alike. Many people they spoke to asked for the artwork to change in some way and to create a colourful flow through the building. The Artists combined all these ideas, together with their desire to explore the different levels of the atrium space.
In Pendleton three sections of plastic will travel the length of the atrium, merging and twisting in bright, bold brushstrokes. They will disappear from view and reappear above and below the walkways which cross through the space. Along the route a series of coloured lights will ripple and flow across the plastic forms, animating the sculpture and continually changing.
Eccles
Artists Rob Vale and Stella Corrall are working together to create an artwork for the Eccles centre which is being built as an extension to the current library.
The Artists visited the library and health centre, schools and colleges and ran create workshops with local groups creating moving images, animations and plastic collages and sculptures to discuss ideas and give people the opportunity to learn about the how the artwork will be created.
The community engagement activities revealed a clear fondness for the original library’s architectural form and detail. The Artists will reflect this in the artwork for the Gateway Centre. In particular focusing on colours of the stained glass and shapes in the organic scroll and leaf forms, alongside the sense of space and the discovery of small details. A reflection of the organic growth of Eccles will also be represented within the artwork.
The artwork will consist of a series of fifty-four pods which will reach out from a central point in the atrium with sculpted plastic fronds. Each sculpted plastic ‘pod’ will contain an LCD screen showing images from around Eccles.
Walkden
Artist Stephen Charnock has been working with the people of Walkden to create a vibrant and innovative work of art.
When asked what was unique about Walkden, many people responded that it was the people of Walkden that give it a unique identity. Many welcomed the new Gateway Centre as a positive step towards regenerating the town centre. People were keen to see a work of art which is forward looking and modern.
Stephen developed the design around the DNA double helix, reflecting the idea that local people are the DNA that makes Walkden unique. The intertwining strands are a symbol of the Primary Care Trust and Salford City Council services coming together in one building. DNA is also a bank of information, as is Salford Direct and Walkden library.
Writer Terry Caffrey has been working with local school children, older people and libraries visitors to create poems and stories about Walkden, exploring what makes the town unique about their experiences of living in Walkden.
The artwork will incorporate an electronic text signage system to share lines and phrases written in these workshops which will spiral around the sculpture in a continuous flow of red lights; just as blood flows around the body.