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Thursday 10 Sep 2009

BLACKFRIARS BRIDGE BRIGHTENED UP BY LONDON'S LONGEST OUTDOOR ART EXHIBITION

Region & Route:

| Southern

The eastern pavement of Blackfriars Road Bridge will become London’s longest and most viewed outdoor art exhibition, when a 246 metre hoarding line running its entire length is turned into a new public art space today.

In a unique partnership between Network Rail and Bankside Gallery, four artists with strong local connections will have their original works reproduced and then featured on this hoarding line for a period of 12 months in a new art exhibition titled, Thames Water-Colours.

Angela Parker, Director of Bankside Gallery, says: “We are delighted to be working with Network Rail on this exciting project. These colourful paintings and prints by renowned Royal Society artists should brighten everybody’s day.”

Reproduced to a size of approximately 3.0 metres by 1.5 metres, each image in the new exhibition will be clearly visible from the western pavement of Blackfriars Road Bridge, close to St Paul’s Cathedral, and is expected to be seen by more than 10 million people annually that use it to cross the River Thames. This figure represents cyclists, pedestrians and motorists.

On the art initiative, a Network Rail spokesperson, comments: “This is a landmark art project for a landmark station.

“We are always looking for new ways to involve local communities when undertaking major projects. The Thames Water-Colours art initiative underlines this.

“It is an exciting use of what would otherwise be dead space and we believe will not only brighten up the area, but will give the featured artists a unique opportunity to showcase their talent to a broader audience in high-profile location.”

Themed around the River Thames, the future of the city, rail transport and the cultural significance of the South Bank, the Thames Water-Colours initiative will brighten up the area and provide another point of interest for tourists visiting the Capital.

Ed Vaizey MP, Shadow Arts Minister, comments: “I’m delighted to support this initiative, it is great that a company like Network Rail is supporting the arts in this way, and understands the importance of involving the arts in their project.”

Renowned oil and digital artist John Duffin, originally from Barrow and now living in Lewisham, is one of four artists participating in this exhibition and created a specially commissioned work for Network Rail - ‘Blackfriars Bridge Looking East’ – which is an artist’s impression of what the new station will look like.

Original images by the artists featured will be on display at Bankside Gallery, 48 Hopton Street, London, SE1 9JH.  Visit www.banksidegallery.com for details.


Note to editors

Thames Water-Colours art intitiative

The featured artists and their works running in order from north to south along the Blackfriars Road Bridge hoarding line are:

• Gail Brodholt – ‘First Light at Farringdon’
• David Paskett – ‘Blackfriars’
• John Duffin – ‘Blackfriars Bridge Looking East’
• Mychael Barratt – ‘Shakespeare in Love’

About the Blackfriars station re-development

• The existing station on the north bank will be completely redeveloped to create a spacious and airy entrance and concourse area incorporating improved interchange facilities with Tube services. The London Underground station will also be significantly enhanced.
• By the end of 2011, the station will be able to handle longer 12 car trains for the first time with significantly more trains stopping at the station every hour.
• The station will provide the first direct National Rail access to the South Bank in over a century, providing direct access to many attractions including the Tate Modern and the surrounding area.