Since I first read about the Junction project here I was pretty excited at the prospect of tracking some of the pieces down. I am a big fan of street art whether it be graffiti, sticks-up or more conventional installations. The idea of turning pieces of street furniture such as junction boxes into art seemed like such a brilliant idea. I did not really know what to expect.
Having heard about the project on this site I was keeping my eyes open on my travels around Leeds on the look-out for it appearing. I was fortunate enough to catch one of the first pieces half completed near the train station and snapped it. This encouraged me to find the rest. I am not a photographer. All of the photos here were taken on my BlackBerry.
I decided to track down all ten. It took me three days. I am convinced they were not all in situ on Saturday. I did not realise at first all were (and indeed still are) situated between the train station and Brown’s on the Headrow. This led me to wander all over town. Nothing like being a home tourist, eh?
Have you walked right by and not noticed these?
“Every day we walk by these traffic control boxes without a second thought, but now artists and designers have offered us innovative way to transform these tired looking boxes. Vibrant, intriguing, witty, these are imaginative approaches which invite us to see these common place street objects in a very different way
Pick up a map from Tourist Information at the Railway Station and locate 10 boxes situated between the station and this junction on The Headrow
Situation Leeds is the public art programme of Leeds Met Gallery & Studio Theatre which is working in partnership to deliver Junction
www.leedsmet.ac.uk/arts
www.theculturecompany.co.uk
JUNCTION”
What a wonderful, wonderful idea.
I love this project – so simple, so effective and I was lucky enough to watch Adrian and James creating one of these pieces (the one with the Technician tinkering inside the box) at their gallery (electric angel, Scarborough) a couple of weeks ago. I even got to pretend to be the technician – heady times!
It’s ideas like this that make many of us stop and assess how, with a little time and creative thought (and a bit of money pushed our way) we can create these beautiful little nuggets of art in the space that we all inhabit daily. They bring a smile to the lips and can change a very dull day into something rather special.
electric angel: http://www.electricangel.co.uk
Sadly the giant bobble hat had gone awol yesterday.
Love the interesting street art. Not so impressed by the budget that it took, or the judging process. The thought of a small panel deciding who should get to work in the public realm feels plain wrong to me.
The project provides a wonderful counterpoint to James Jessops tales of derring do at Creative Networks….
Oh Mike glad you like the work, as for judging panel, I’m not sure that’s what it was called. The Culture Company and Leeds Met Gallery developed the idea, sourced the different funding and support, project managed it and commissioned the art work. Not everything with public funding has to go out to a committee to make a decision does it? Can’t we trust the people (who are experts on their profession) who had the idea to deliver the project? This is just the start of the project, all being well the ten Junction boxes so far will grow to 20, 30 or more. Could stimulate an appetite in the city for more art in the public sphere.
We also have a blog post here about James Jessop https://theculturevulture.co.uk/reviews/creative-networks-james-jessop-artistic-vandal/
Nice work Decknologist, something to occupy you as you bounce between work and Jumbo! 😉
I love the idea of these and will look out for them next time I’m in Leeds. Leeds sorely needs more street art of all kinds. That’s what struck me about Transform at the Playhouse – it’s actually the area around the theatre that needs transforming w some street furniture, temporary and permanent artwork and animation, as it’s all a bit bleak. I know Quarry Hill festival is a start.
A lovely piece of work; witty, charming, well-executed and simple. There have been some similar works appearing in Brighton, but I have to say Leeds seems to have done it better.
As for selection; well, somebody has to decide it’s a good idea – pursue funding – jump whatever hurdles are put in their way. I’m quite happy that after all that work they choose what goes where.
It’s really interesting to see people’s reactions to the Junction project. In relation to Mike’s comment “Not so impressed by the budget that it took” – although it’s a project we’re working on, I haven’t seen the budget but Mike does raise an interesting question. The funding came from the Arts Council and if it hadn’t been spent on this project, it would have been spent elsewhere on other artists’ work. 13 artists and several technicians, manufacturers, suppliers of materials and others were employed in the project – people have been paid to come up with ideas and to make stuff which I think is good and proper. Anyone in Leeds can see the work for free without having to go into a gallery. The question Mike’s comment raises for me is how much is too much?