Talk to Me: UK

As part of London Design Festival, award-winning British designer Steuart Padwick collaborated with Time to Change, Ramboll and Hoare Lea to create Talk to Me, a series of two 5.5-metre sculptures designed to stimulate conversations about mental health.

Two giant figures, situated in King’s Boulevard, King’s Cross, reminded passers-by that through communication, the weight that so many of us carry can be reduced. As visitors approached the breathing wooden sculptures, a sensor was triggered, and the figures voiced poignant and uplifting words. These conversations started to crack the ‘burden’ to release a glowing light. The series progressed from a standing figure, literally carrying the burden on its shoulders, to a figure resting against its burden, highlighting that while the burden may not be overtly visible, it is often not far away.

Following Padwick’s Head Above Water sculpture for designjunction 2018, members of the project team were reunited for this year’s installation. Providing their expertise pro-bono, Ramboll addressed the many structural design challenges, while Hoare Lea worked on developing Padwick’s vision for the sound and lighting solution.

Constructed in sustainable Douglas Fir timber, intended to convey a warmth and humanity, the figures contrasted with the strict cuboid shapes and concrete-looking burden blocks. Scale was important to convey the power of the subject and again to emphasise the humanity of the voices Padwick had recorded. To achieve his artistic vision, Padwick used HI-MACS, a composite material panel, and routed ‘cracks’ into it so that Hoare Lea could add LED profiles from Orluna, making it appear to seep through and reveal these cracks.

Padwick asked Hoare Lea to create an interactive method using sensors to play the voices, which would create an intimacy with the pieces. Padwick collaborated with more than 30 writers, poets, actors and mental health recovery ambassadors who wrote and recorded pieces for Talk to Me. Making this work required careful balancing of these voices in what is a noisy, open space. The pieces needed to be able to express the importance of communication to mental health.

James Buck, Lighting Designer at Hoare Lea, explained: “We wanted to help realise Padwick’s ideas to ensure that the lighting worked with the sound and the physical sculpture to emphasise the message that talking can reduce the weight on our shoulders. The communication between the passers-by and the figures provided a valuable space for people to stop and think about the importance of speaking and being heard, creating a sensory experience to engage and inspire.”

Alan Dowdall, Ramboll Associate, added: “Ramboll was delighted to collaborate with Steuart on another inspiring and thought-provoking piece. As a pledged Time to Change employer, the message on communication and mental health resonates with us and our commitments to change our industry’s attitude and behaviours for the better.” www.hoarelea.com

www.steuartpadwick.co.uk