Opening The World Of Arts

Chiswick Decorative & Fine Arts lecture on Thomas Heatherwick

Thomas Heatherwick was once described by Terence Conran as “the Leonardo da Vinci of our times”.

Amongst his works are the British Pavilion at the Shanghai Expo in 2010, the Olympic Cauldron at the London Olympics, and his proposed Garden Bridge across the Thames is due to be completed in 2017.

Olympic 'cauldron'

The Chiswick Decorative and Fine Arts Society (ChADFAS) will host a lecture given by fine arts expert Anthea Streeter (below) on the works of Thomas Heatherwick on Thursday 12th November 2015 at the Polish Centre, Hammersmith W6.

Thomas Heatherwick, has won many awards and honours: in 2004 he was the youngest practitioner to be appointed a Royal Designer for Industry; he won a Gold Medal for his British Pavilion at the Shanghai Expo in 2010, and in the same year he was designer of the year in Japan. Sir Terence Conran spotted his talent early on and has described Heatherwick as “the Leonardo da Vinci of our times”.

Heatherwick’s work received world-wide coverage in 2012 when with his studio team he designed the Olympic Cauldron at the London Olympics. The giant ring of fire rising up from the centre of the Olympic Stadium was a memorable sight, and the lecture will look at how they achieved that spectacular moment. The Heatherwick Studio has also designed the new red London bus, the first re-design of such an iconic symbol of London for 50 years. A part-model of the bus was featured at the acclaimed exhibition of their work at the Victoria & Albert Museum in 2012.

Heatherwick’s approach is multi-disciplinary, and with his colleagues he blends architecture, sculpture and engineering to produce elegant results, from large urban spaces to individual items such as his Zip Bag for the French firm Longchamp. His proposed Garden Bridge across the River Thames, due to be completed in 2017, is receiving extensive media coverage and will add another dimension to London’s many parks and gardens.

November 8, 2015