Art on the Underground Unveils a New Permanent Artwork
Today, 28 November 2024, Art on the Underground unveils a new permanent artwork by Hannah Quinlan and Rosie Hastings at St James’s Park station, the only Grade I listed station on the Tube network. Angels of History is the first mosaic created by the artist duo, and is composed of six panels, each measuring 1.5 x 1 metres, prominently installed in the station’s atrium.
Quinlan and Hastings’s collaborative practice is an exploration of the relationship between public space, architecture, state infrastructure, gender, and sexual identity. Their recent output has focused on fresco painting, a medium traditionally associated with historic, religious artworks. Quinlan and Hastings’ paintings depict various power dynamics, class and social relations, and positions of authority playing out in public space, raising the question: who does the street belong to?
Quinlan and Hastings’s new Art on the Underground commission draws from the rich history of the building in which it will be installed: 55 Broadway, London Underground’s iconic Headquarters for over 80 years, located directly above St James’s Park station. It was the tallest building in London on its completion in 1929, and was immediately considered radical, in part thanks to the sculptures carved into its stone façade by artists including Jacob Epstein and Henry Moore. The choice to realise their new work in mosaic – a material frequently employed in post-war civic spaces – is a new departure for the artists, who have drawn inspiration directly from the Roman mosaic tradition.
Whilst making Angels of History the pair became interested in Walter Benjamin’s The Arcades Project, an unfinished collection of writings on urban life in Paris during the 19th century, where he argues that the most perilous moments of crisis aren’t when everything portends to change, but rather when ‘the status quo threatens to be preserved.’ Exterior and interior architecture plays an important role in Hastings & Quinlan’s practice, as a force that shapes people’s behaviour and desires; and the work depicts a handful of isolated buildings: a row of post-war terraced houses, three Art Deco skyscrapers, and 55 Broadway. Post-war housing, which frequently appears in Hastings & Quinlan’s work, is particularly relevant for the pair in relation to Benjamin’s perspective of what emerges from the rubble of history. While a utopian ideal underlined the post-war social housing movement, suburban architecture of this period helped to constrain sex and gender into its purely reproductive form both biologically and economically. Art deco was an architectural style representing luxury, glamor, exuberance and faith in technological progress.
Angels of History is inspired by Walter Benjamin’s Theses on the Philosophy of History (1940), wherein Benjamin describes the painting Angelus Novus by Paul Klee as an image of the ‘angel of history.’ Quinlan and Hastings’ work centres on two triptychs featuring androgynous, angelic figures, whose ambivalent gazes are turned towards one another and fall over the commuters passing beneath them. During the creation of the work the pair reflected on the angels of the Old Testament, who were at once sublime and terrible to behold.
The figures are set against an uncanny landscape of rolling hillsides. Full-scale frescos were painted by the pair as a template for the final mosaic work; these were conceived while the artists were in residency in St Ives, Cornwall. The wild and ancient landscape of Cornwall, particularly Zennor’s megalithic pagan monuments, were a significant influence on the barren and sparsely populated landscape found in the artwork, which speaks to an ecology in crisis; an image of the future in which few relics of humanity persist.
Situated between Westminster – where the future is debated – and the Royal Palaces – where the past is preserved – Quinlan and Hastings’s work reflects on a period of reactionary political nostalgia embodied by the UK leaving the European Union.
Against a backdrop of global conflict and political upheaval, their new artwork occupies a curious space between past, present and future, their divine angelic figures embodying these multiple perspectives and temporalities, to watch over London in perpetuity.
Rosie Hastings & Hannah Quinlan, artists, said: “St James’s Park is a station predominantly used by commuters working in and around the Westminster area, often in positions of governance or the civil service. We were interested in the function of the figure of the angel in public spaces such as in churches where it operates as a figure of divine intervention who passes judgment.
“In creating an artwork that looks back at the viewer, we wanted to illustrate a figure who is always watching. It is an artwork that considers the relationship between the present and the past. Our angels are inspired by Michelangelo’s five Sibyls in the Sistine Chapel who have an incredible physical and emotional presence. A Sibyl is a prophetess or oracle in Ancient Greece who prophesied at sacred sites such as Delphi.
“We situated our angelic or prophet figures in landscapes that represent both rural and urban qualities: rolling hills, old weather-beaten trees, disorientating perspectives and wide open grassy plains alongside art deco skyscrapers, post-war council houses and a model of 55 Broadway. By combining them together in our artwork, these familiar landscapes become alienated with buildings taking on a sacred, temple-like significance.”
Eleanor Pinfield, Head of Art on the Underground, said:
“St James’s Park station and 55 Broadway stands at the heart of London Underground’s commitment to art and design. Since the early 1900s, London Underground has shaped the city by utilising the unexpected perspectives of leading architects and artists of the age.
“Through Art on the Underground, we ensure that the vision of artists continues to bring enriched spaces to customers today. Quinlan and Hastings’ permanent commission at St James’s Park is a stunning addition to the station that reflects on its location, the history of art in public spaces and specifically on the lineage of mosaic works found on London Underground. It embodies the creative power of art in public spaces and will delight our customers for generations to come.”
Tony Matharu, owner of 55 Broadway, commented:
“London’s artists are the heartbeat of our city’s cultural identity, and supporting their talent is essential to keeping London’s creative spirit alive. By providing opportunities and platforms for their work to thrive, we not only enrich our communities but also strengthen London’s position as a global hub for art and innovation.
“I am a long-standing supporter of London’s artists and applaud the collective efforts in breathing new creative and thought-provoking work into, and welcoming everyone to enjoy, this impressive landmark building.”
James Reed CBE, Chairman and Chief Executive of Reed, sponsor of Art of the Underground, said:
“The historic St James’ Park makes for an iconic location for contemporary thinkers and artists to display their works. Quinlan and Hastings offer an interesting juxtaposition by celebrating both past and present. As a Londoner myself, this makes for an intriguing and grounding journey to work, reminding us of both what brought us here and what is here now.”