PUBLIC ARTWORKS
Feltham Station Mural with We Are Sky High
Images 1 & 3 courtesy of Christopher Witt
The Reach Children’s Hub started community organising after joining the Hounslow Citizens UK alliance in 2019. We were trained in community organising methods and how to run a listening campaign. We listened to over 120 local people, young and old from all backgrounds. We heard that people felt unsafe because young people did not have a safe place to go and were therefore hanging around the streets and in parks. From the listening, we gathered stories and mapped out where people felt most unsafe. This allowed us to pinpoint areas for concern and help us narrow down where to focus our campaign.
Next, we formed a core team to plan our campaign and take action. The team decided to focus on the alleyway running alongside Feltham station, an area identified as particularly unsafe. We met with a range of local stakeholders, Councillors and the Local Authority. We arranged site visits with relevant organisations and got South Western Railway (SWR) to upgrade the platform lighting, which helped improve visibility along the alleyway. We also negotiated with LBH Highways to resurface the path making it more accessible for wheelchair users, cyclists and people with buggies.
One of the core team came up with the idea to replace the existing wooden fence with new metal railings so there was clear visibility from the platform onto the alley. Following many negotiations with SWR and Network Rail, led by Noveen Philips, a local resident, it was apparent there was no money available to do this work. We decided to approach the Thriving Communities team at LBH to explore the possibility of a grant to fund the work. We were delighted when our Expression of Interest was accepted and went onto apply for a grant to replace the fencing and to add some much needed artwork to the area. Although we were unable to get permission to have a mural on the station wall, we were given permission to replace an old mural on the other side of the old crossing, behind Asda. We completed the grant application and were successful, receiving almost £80,000! We worked with Feltham Arts to commission artists Roo and Tom from We Are Sky High to work with a group of students from Rivers Academy to plan the mural based on the theme of the river. Through a number of workshops the students created initial design ideas which the artist translated, to complete the mural to the excitement of the local community. The fencing is due to be replaced very soon and we are looking forward to celebrating with all stakeholders.
Feltham Green Murals of Mosaic with Susie John
FELTHAM
feld = open space or field
felt or felte = wild marjoram or mullein plant
ham = village
Mullein flower mosaics produced by artist Susie John in collaboration with the Friends of Feltham Green, Feltham Arts and local volunteers across 2022. Funded by the London Borough of Hounslow
Between 2021 -2022, the London Borough of Hounslow, Feltham Arts, the Friends of Feltham Green and local artist Susie John hosted a series of online and community engagement activities to gather the public's feedback on possible themes and styles of mosaic to create a mural/murals for the retaining wall next to the pond at Feltham Green.
Based on the feedback received from the 200+ responses to the initial survey and a public vote in October/November 2021, lead artist Susie John created a series of beautiful mosaics with community volunteers inspired by the history of Feltham’s name. Mullein flower heads have been mounted all along the wall. To prepare the appropriate background colour for these giant Mullein flower heads, a Feltham based contractor, Joe Holmes repainted the wall at the end of March in preparation for the public artwork. The mosaics were installed by Paul Davis and will be enjoyed for years to come.