At the end of 2006 Artwise curators were asked by the developer of the former Post Office sorting office in Howick Place, Victoria to realise the building's public art requirement; as I was then still a full time curator with Artwise I was lucky enough to be involved in the project from the start. It was no doubt an exciting opportunity, as although a public artwork was a condition of the building's planning permission, 9 Howick Place was to be a centre for creative enterprises, including Phillips de Pury's London HQ, other galleries and studios; the owner knew that the work commissioned would represent the building and the activity within. Not to mention the building itself - 9 Howick Place was built in 1894 and had been home to the Post Office for more than 100 years, surviving dramatic events and times of rapid change. The late Victorian red brick building behind Victoria Street had been the sorting office for the Houses of Parliament and until recently, when the Queen was in residence at Buckingham Palace several staff from Howick Place would be seconded to the Palace.
An artist had to be inspired by the building's heritage, and their work would have to engage the site's many different audiences. When we discussed the opportunity with Idris Khan he was keen to visit the building; we got in after the sorting equipment had been removed but while traces of its former use were still evident, and Idris' interest was piqued. The developer was also delighted to discover Idris' work, but challenges remained. Howick Place is in a densely built conservation area of SW1 surrounded by a narrow pavement, so finding a site for any work or intervention was not straightforward. From the outset Idris had proposed working in film, and what better way to integrate this in the function of the building, while allowing it to be visible to the public, than to pave the entrance to the design studios with screens. With no proof that this was feasible or would be approved by Westminster Council, but certain it was a great idea, we set about realising it.
While the concept of the work developed in Idris' studio, a way of putting screens in the ground had to be found. Just one company in the UK, Flasma, make floor mounted screens, and in early 2007 they had only done so in indoor commercial sites; what was needed was a screen model that could withstand copious rain (this is England), heavy footfall and general abuse and be visible day and night. We were very lucky that both Flasma and Squire and Partners, the architects for the redevelopment, made every possible effort to ensure that it happened. Working with Zoo Broadcast, Flasma integrated the latest sun readable LCD screens into a new casing which allows drainage but has no visible power, information or water conduits, while Squire and Partners accommodated the power, data and ventilation out of sight inside in the building. And when the developer's commitment to the work was clear, Westminster Council's public art committee gave us their thumbs up.
Meanwhile in East London, the film content came together slowly. One of Idris' first, intuitive responses to the brief was that actions would be reversed so blank pages could re-emerge, or chaos be resolved. This idea was addressed using his customary practice of repeating and underlining actions or images. On one hand a utopian world is created, and it is akin to tangled and restless processes of creativity that bring about sometimes simple outcomes. Idris found inspiration also in the paraphernalia of the post, the romance of brown paper and string, and how words and gestures become almost independent after they are sent. He worked with set designer Naomi Dawson to build a complex stage within his studio where stamping, sorting and processing could be enacted, the raw material for the films. Lighting designer Anna Watson, photographer Thierry Bal, art director Collette McWilliams and producer Pinky Ghundale were also involved to realise the short clips in black and white, repeated actions of trial and error, making and remaking, and the building's erstwhile activity bewitched by reversal.
Today the four screens of 'Fragile' sit in random fashion outside the doors of Howick Place, as if they too were scattered by a powerful hand. There is no 'right' position from which the films should be viewed, and complex editing of each screen programme means that even users of the building passing on a regular basis shall rarely see the same combination of images. When the work was unveiled last month, we were very proud of what had been achieved, but I have great, great envy for the lost tourists or local workers who come across 'Fragile' unexpectedly when Howick Place is still. I hope they shall be engaged, intrigued and delighted.
Aoife Rosenmeyer
Idris Khan: Fragile
9 Howick Place
London SW1P 1AA
7 am - 1 am daily
Images: Film stills from Idris Khan's, 'Fragile', a public art commission for 7 Howick Place 2008
Photo copyright Idris Khan 2008
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