Northolt Art Stops
Collaborating with a local artist community to deliver temporay public art and activate community assets along the high street.
“Art Stops” is a pilot public art project to celebrate and support Northolt's local artist community, delivered in partnership with Ealing Council. Led by New Practice, this project ran from 2022, with artwork installed by late 2023. The pilot project involved collaborative engagement with local artists, residents, and stakeholders, shaping a process for community public art and activation in Northolt.
Photo credit Jane Lam.
This pilot project was informed by Visions for Northolt, a community engagement process led by New Practice with RESOLVE Collective in 2021. Visions for Northolt was created to gather local insights, and aspirations to co-create a long-term vision for Northolt. Through a comprehensive engagement programme and series of events—from workshops to local walks—we reached around 300 local people and shaped a community-led vision for Northolt. Through this engagement, the project identified a growing community of over 70 local artists and emphasised the importance of art and culture to Northolt’s identity.
Public art bench by Jane Ruhland.
Photo credit Jane Lam.
Northolt Leisure Centre art by Errol Donald.
Photo credit Jane Lam.
For Art Stops, New Practice worked closely with local artists and the wider Northolt community to deliver a series of temporary art installations and the Community and Public Art Strategy to deliver on the aspirations of Visions for Northolt. Rather than beginning with a predefined outcome, Art Stops focused on establishing a process for delivering community public art that activated local assets and tested approaches for long-term, permanent interventions.
Northolt Library artwork by Samira Mian. Photo credit Jane Lam.
Eastcote Lane garages artwork by Levi Richards. Photo credit Jane Lam.
In late 2023, New Practice used the insights from both Visions for Northolt and Art Stops to shape a Community and Public Art Strategy for Northolt. This strategy aims to deliver temporary and permanent art installations that reflect Northolt’s identity, creating lasting value through art and placemaking. Building on Art Stop’s success, the Community and Public Art Strategy sets out a long-term framework for delivering community and public art in Northolt over the next five years, in ways that reflect its community's voices, talents, and aspirations.
Client: London Borough of Ealing Council
Location: Northolt, London
Date: 2022 - 2023
Collaborators: Levi Richards, Samira Mian, Errol Donalds, Jane Ruhland