It has been three years in the making, but a stunning new public artwork has finally been unveiled across the façade The Gaumont building on the King’s Road.

Entitled Cascade, the ceramic abstract diptych fills two 609 x 288 cm panels on either side of the 1930s frontage that was once The Gaumont Palace cinema and theatre and now the focus of a considerable cultural re-generation for Chelsea.

The new work – commissioned by Cadogan Estates – was unveiled by Lord Edward Cadogan in a special (and suitably quirky) ceremony from aboard an open-top vintage Routemaster bus on 10th July.

Acclaimed London artist Shezad Dawood was the star guest amongst a small group of VIPs on ‘The Gaumont Special’ as dark drapes dropped to reveal two stunning ceramic panels of 74 hand-painted tiles, each with a large ceramic moon and “bursts of fireworks”‘ in sculptured relief.

 

 

In an exclusive interview with The Citizen aboard the bus, Dawood revealed that Cascade is rich in abstract references to the cultural heritage of Chelsea, from King Charles II and painter James Whistler, to early cinema and fashion designers Vivienne Westwood and Mary Quant – by way of Dracula and Frankenstein! Referring to the extensive research that ‘informed’ the work, Dawood said: ‘I really enjoyed going to town with my research by thinking about how to make a work that is simultaneously across time, timeless, and out of time.’

 

 

Cascade is the largest piece of public art commissioned for Chelsea by Cadogan Estates in more than 40 years. After pressing the ‘detonation button’ that released the drapes to expose the works, Lord Cadogan said: ‘I think the piece is beautiful, really lovely. It is also an important addition to Chelsea and is all part of the plan to improve and re-generate the area. I have really enjoyed learning about the elements of Chelsea’s history that helped inspire Shezad.’

The Gaumont renovation project has been ten years in development since conception. The space covers 220,000 sq/ft and will have cost £235m by the time it is fully completed next year. The building has offices and 47 apartments, but the driving ambition behind the project is for the public spaces to become a cultural “anchor” that is at the heart of a vibrant creative quarter for Chelsea, a place that celebrates the creativity of the past, as well as of the future.

Hugh Seaborn, CEO of Cadogan, said: ‘When we envisioned The Gaumont, we knew it had to be more than a re-development – it had to feel rooted in the cultural legacy of the King’s Road and speak to the people who live, work and walk along this road every day. The unveiling of ’Cascade’ lights up the restored historic façade of The Gaumont and eloquently celebrates so much of the King’s Road’s rich heritage and the many icons associated with it.

‘Shezad Dawood was the perfect artist to express that. His work isn’t just beautiful – it’s a creative anchor. It reminds us that development isn’t only about new space, but about identity. His work captures the emotional texture of the area: the cinema, the characters, the creative spirit that’s always defined Chelsea. It is part of a wider revitalisation plan for one of the world’s most famous high streets.’

The Gaumont has already part-opened, with the first outlets on the Chelsea Manor Street side going to independent businesses, which have been deliberately hand-picked by Cadogan to chime with its ambition to embrace all-things creative. These units include:

BookBar – a bookshop, wine and coffee bar, which aims to cultivate a vibrant literary scene through author talks, book clubs, and events.

New Forms – a vinyl café and boutique record shop curated by the team behind Next Door Records. It is a hub for vinyl culture and social connection, with a music-led bar that regularly hosts events and collaborations with artists and musicians.

Art Play – a dynamic space for artists and art lovers, with an emphasis on engagement by providing workshops, exhibitions, and a collaborative environment for the local community.

 

 

Two fashion retailers – Arket and Mango – will open flagship stores in the autumn, as will a new pub, to be called The Trafalgar – so-named as a nod to the pub that was lost to the new build. There will also be a new bar and restaurant with panoramic views of Chelsea at the top of The Gaumont.

 

 

In the second half of next year, The Gaumont project will be topped out with the opening of a grand 600-seater Curzon cinema.

For further information, visit The Gaumont website here.

For more detail about Shezad Dawood and his work visit here.

 

Scroll down for our exclusive report about the grand unveiling, an interview with Dawood, and our photos from the opening party…

 

 

 

 

 

The Big Reveal

 

All photos by Rob McGibbon for The Chelsea Citizen

 

The Citizen joined a select gathering of VIPs for the grand reveal of the Cascade art installation. Safety and practical concerns prevented Cadogan Estates from closing the relevant section of the King’s Road to stage a bigger ceremony, so proceedings took a suitably off-beat and low-key route.

On a scorching, sun-drenched afternoon, the party boarded a vintage open-top Routemaster bus – The Gaumont Special, no less – at Duke of York Square for the short trip to the new building. Among the gathering were Lord Cadogan, CEO Hugh Seaborn, Marketing & Comms dynamo Caroline Jennings and other key members of the Cadogan team. RBKC was fully represented by various members of its Cabinet, including Leader Elizabeth Campbell, Deputy Leader Kim Taylor-Smith, and councillors Cem Kemahli, Emma Will and Josh Rendall. Plus a few lesser council mortals.

Other top deck dignitaries included Julian Turner, planning expert of The Chelsea Society, and Geoffrey Matthews, CEO of Chelsea Arts Club. Shezad Dawood’s studio team was also in attendance, as well as Mark Davy, the founder and head of Futurecity, the “cultural placemaking agency” that has curated the project since its earliest days.

After a short trip – inevitably in heavy traffic – the bus alighted opposite The Gaumont where Lord Cadogan made a short speech. He recalled a fond childhood memory of visiting Habitat in the 1970s when he was eight years old to buy a teddy bear – for the first time with his own money.

Lord Cadogan was then passed a “detonation” gizmo, complete with red button, which was to automatically release the darkened drapes covering the Cascade panels. He led the group in a countdown from five-to-zero, at which time he pressed the button. The drape over Cascade ‘West’ fell completely, but much to the amusement of the party, drape ‘East’ fell slightly short. “Typical!”, one observer exclaimed.

After the big reveal, Dawood talked to the group about the inspiration behind the work, as (plastic) flutes of celebratory chilled (non-vintage) Moet et Chandon champagne were poured to toast Dawood’s achievement.

Shortly afterwards, The Citizen took up position on one of the top deck seats to interview Dawood. As the bus made its way down the King’s Road, before taking the loop back to Duke of York’s via (backed-up) Beaufort Street and Chelsea Embankment, we talked about the process of the work and the influences behind it. But the first question was obvious – how did he feel to see the work unveiled?

‘A great relief!’ he said. ‘It has taken three years, but even up until today I had not seen it in position in its final state. I have been on the scaffolding, but because it was behind covering, I was not able to go across the street and look at it properly. So, I was really anxious before the covers came down, but I am now relaxed and very pleased with it. In fact, I am more than pleased!

‘I like a work to be kenetic – there’s nothing worse than a static spice of art. There should be dancing and I feel that this work has an energy to it. You can plan for all sorts things, but there is always a nice couple of surprises in store for when you see a piece in its final state. That is the process and that is what has happened today.

‘One of the nice bits was seeing how the texture on some of tiles was picking up the light and glinting like gold. Beautiful. The whole artwork is designed to function at different times of the day. The work is about the arc of the moon, but we also playfully looked at the arc of the sun and how it would cast shadows across the tiles from different angles, at different points of the day.’

Dawood discussed the making of the piece and told how, before coming upon with the central idea, he immersed himself in the history of The Gaumont Palace and Chelsea’s cultural past in order to create something that was inherently connected to the area.

Gradually, the moon became a driving symbol as it repeatedly united multiple elements of his research. First up was the resonance of early cinema pioneer George Méliès and his iconic film Trip to the Moon, which was distributed by The Gaumont. Then Dawood went as far back as King Charles II because he was an astronomer, as well as the monarch who created the King’s Road as he own personal carriageway. Former Chelsea residents, authors Bram Stoker and Mary Shelley, also became relevant because the moon features so significantly in their most famous Gothic novels – Dracula and Frankenstein. The influence of Vivien Westwood also chimed because she adapted King Charles’ royal orb into the logo of her fashion brand. And Mary Quant’s love of geometric design sparked Dawood’s imagination. Dawood also revealed that the history of the Chelsea pottery and its palette was firmly in his mind as he prepared to use ceramic tiles in his work.

But it is a painting by Chelsea artist James Whistler that became a central influence – Nocturne in Black and Gold, the Falling Rocket from 1875. This painting depicts a fireworks display at night at Cremorne Gardens, as viewed from across the river. The painting is famous – indeed, notorious – because it led to a damning rebuke by John Ruskin in the Fors Clavigera newsletter in 1877. Ruskin lambasted the worked as “flinging a pot of paint in the public’s face”. Whistler sued and, although he won the case, he only received nominal damages and was financially bankrupted by the court costs.

‘That battle, for me, is one for the future of abstraction in painting,’ says Dawood. ‘Whistler’s particular affinity with colour is something that I really resonate with.’

Dawood spent much of his childhood growing up in Ladbroke Grove and has had many connections with the royal borough and Chelsea over the years. He went to see the classic 1954 film Seven Samurai with his father at the Chelsea Cinema when he was nine, which became an important part of his early cinema education.

In the 1980s and 90s, Dawood used to hang out a lot with one of his best mates who lived on the World’s End Estate and was in a pop group. And, Dawood’s first job was in the stock room of Dillon’s bookshop on the King’s Road when he was 19 and at art college. Dawood, moved to the east of London in the 1990s because, he jokes, ‘Richard Curtis priced us out of Notting Hill!’.

Dawood added that his long association with London has made the Cascade project for The Gaumont particularly special:

‘Although I have not lived in Chelsea, I have a certain knowledge of the area, so this has been one of my most exciting projects. To have something permanent in my home city, on a site where I have a very personal connection, has been really exciting. The whole process has been lovely. We talked to the residents and held forums, so I like to think that everyone feels they are included and part of the journey in some way.

‘It feels absolute fantastic and I can’t stress enough how, to have something on home turf in London is such a thrill. It is a privilege that I am really grateful for.’

 

Keep scrolling for images from the launch party

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Beyond the Velvet Rope

 

Launch party photos, hosted in conjunction with Wallpaper*, by Rob McGibbon for TCC

 

 

 

To find out more about The Gaumont visit: https://thegaumont.co.uk