Blooming Diversity
The London Borough of Newham commissioned this work in 2006 to address an eyesore site on an estate in Plaistow, East London, as part of their long term regeneration strategy to raise the quality of the urban environment. At the base of this block of flats were a row of derelict garages that needed something to brighten the area. The brief was to create a highly decorative design that reflected the ethnic diversity of the Borough, was complex and colourful enough to discourage grafitti and could be printed in multiples to fill the perimeter of a flexible site.
This design is based on the principle languages of Newham and the national flowers of the leading countries in which those languages are spoken - rose for England, tulip for Turkey, jasmine for Pakistan, etc. These flowers represent the exotic beauty and diversity of the spoken word in the area, an amazing mixture of colour in the landscape of East London.
The boards were designed so that they could be printed in sequence and butted together to create a seamless wall of flowers in an area with little colour and decorative design.
