In the summer of 2021, Vauxhall One and Moniker Culture created a spectacular outdoor art gallery featuring the works of eleven incredible artists.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, several arches along Albert Embankment and Goding Street in Vauxhall became vacant. The team at Vauxhall One wanted to bring life back to the streets through art, and teamed up with Moniker Culture to add an injection of much needed life and joy to Vauxhall’s railway arches.
They put a call out across the art airwaves with their Art in the Arches public callout, under the theme ‘Love Different, Love Vauxhall’. After receiving over 125 applications for the paid commissions, the project partners chose eleven pieces to install into the arches for the final exhibition.
Vauxhall One said:
“We received a number of high-quality submissions from local artists and selecting the final 11 was tough! Each artist stood out in how they interpreted the ‘Love Different, Love Vauxhall’ brief. The works we chose all brought out our diverse and proud Vauxhall community.”
Charlotte Cywinski, Portfolio Asset Manager at The Arch Company said:
“We’re really pleased to see this creative initiative come to life at the railway arches in Vauxhall. The arches are home to a brilliant and diverse range of businesses that The Arch Company is proud to champion.”
The chosen artists were:
Mr Penfold (Tim Gresham)
Luke Smile, a typographic artist
Susheel Basra, graphic designer
Illustrator Roxane Dewar
Italian artist and illustrator Gianinna Delpino
Botanical print designer Leila Vibert Stokes
Collage designer and animator Flavia Felipe
Graphic designer Craig Yamey
Muralist, illustrator and self-professed doodler Luke Embden
Artist and graphic designer NERONE
Thomas Kirk Shannon, VAULT Creative Arts
Luke Embden told us:
“My site-specific artwork is paying homage to the numerous nightclubs and music venues near the arches. Vauxhall for many years has had a prominent LGBTQIA+ community which stands loud and proud within Vauxhall, and I wanted to honour the community by including as many references as possible, especially with the huge heart as the focal point for my piece… Love is always the answer!”
