Boston Manor Park Arts Markets

The concept was developed to activate and bring a human scale to the space situated under the dominant M4 motorway flyover. The stalls mimic the striking infrastructure above with a butterfly form. Together with colour, this brings playfulness and energy to the otherwise vacant space. The market brings together and provides a platform for the diverse local community. The design of the stalls has been developed jointly by Kaner Olette Architects and Allen Scott Landscape Architects, with specialist fabricators ZedWorks Design and Creative Edge AB involved in detailed design development, fabrication and delivery to site. Multiple iterations of design emerged from discussions with the GLA, specialist consultants and stakeholders. The stalls are designed to be robust to withstand vandalism, whilst also being easy to adjust, assemble and disassemble. They are also adaptable to other uses when not in-use as a market, such as outdoor exhibitions and festivals, in order to make a positive contribution to the space. Additionally, the structures are manually movable at short notice - an essential design constraint to keep maintenance access for the M4 flyover. The stalls are fabricated with galvanised powder-coated steel with an anti-graffiti coating to ensure durability and a long lifespan. The form allows them to be stacked into each other and securely locked with anchors in the ground for safe storage overnight when not in use. Seven types of attachable ‘accessories’ such as shelves, hooks and display boards allow for the units to be adjusted to a broad range of user requirements. The accessories are stored separately on trolleys for easy indoor storage, and for efficient distribution during assembly and clear-up.