Art for all to enjoy
With a rich tradition of creative activity and many world-class cultural organisations based in the area, the art programme has been central to the development of King’s Cross since work began. The contemporary art projects that appear on the buildings and public spaces at King’s Cross celebrate the area’s heritage and its future.
The background
The role of art was identified in the King’s Cross Central Public Realm Strategy in 2004. The strategy recognised that activated, animated, welcoming public spaces are critical to the success of the development and that public space should be conceived as a series of well-connected areas, well integrated with the surrounding city, inclusive and accessible.
Since 2006, a range of projects – from the small and experimental – to the large and ambitious have been achieved. Some have been led by others and hosted at King’s Cross, while others were initiated by the King’s Cross Central Limited Partnership in conjunction with partners.
Early presentations include High Wire by the London-based artist Catherine Yass, commissioned by Artangel and Scattered Crowd by William Forsythe, commissioned by Sadlers Wells; a performance of In Time by London Sinfonietta and an Arts Council England residency programme to work with the artists Ellie Reid, 2008/9 and Graham Hudson, 2009/10.
RELAY
Michael Pinsky and Stéphanie Delcroix were the first curators to be appointed. Their programme RELAY was inspired by the transformation of the area.
Projects included IFO, a 9-metre high art installation by Jacques Rival, Of Soil and Water: King’s Cross Pond Club by Ooze and Marjetica Potrč, Black Maria by Richard Wentworth and GRUPPE, and the vast artwork, Across the Buildings by Felice Varini.
The King’s Cross Project
In 2016, Tamsin Dillon and Rebecca Heald were appointed as the new curators at King’s Cross. Working in a three-year scope, they headed up The King’s Cross Project.
Commissions to date are No.700 Reflectors by Rana Begum, Aleppo at King’s Cross by Tess Jaray, Does the Iterative Fit by Tatham O’Sullivan, Almost Everybody by Tobias Rehberger, Zanzibar by Céline Condorelli, Rhapsody in Four Colours by Rasheed Araeen and Semaphores by Amalia Pica.
