Jacqueline Poncelet’s tripartite commission Three Views for The Crown Estate’s development The Marq (concept design: McAslan and executive architects: Rolfe Judd) comprises two external elements – a gold-leafed splay corner and bronze gates - complemented by an interior wall-based terrazzo artwork.
Poncelet’s proposal for the artwork was inspired by the history of tailoring in the St James’s quarter and the concept of ‘dropped threads’ on the floor of every tailor’s workshop. Curvilinear forms representing the threads are to be found in each of the three interrelated elements: the carved and gold-leafed surfaces of three of the corner window ‘reveals’, the large-scale bronze gates and fanlight above, and thirdly the coloured terrazzo artwork on the right hand wall of the reception area.
Jacqueline Poncelet comments:
‘Working on this proposal I thought a good deal about the destruction of one thing to be replaced by another, the unseen history of people long gone. I thought about each new generation bringing its own order as the city is stitched together from component parts, the old and the new. I thought about the making that takes place in the tailors’ shops to create the suits, shirts and ties so much in evidence along Jermyn Street. I looked for something that might represent all the small events that have shaped the people and the neighbourhood.’
Realised in timeless, traditional materials - gold leaf on stone, bronze and terrazzo - the artworks are designed to be long-lasting and to weather naturally as part of the architecture. The commission allowed the artist the opportunity to work in materials previously unexplored by her and the resultant artworks were realised in collaboration with Rolfe Judd Architects and with expert subcontractors and specialists.