Maps of London and Beyond by Adam Dant

Author:Adam Dant
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pavilion Books

Mayfair, a place which has its origins in ancient seasonal revelries, described in the form of a medieval mappa mundi, showing the world according to its known boundaries.

Ink and gouache on paper (100cm diameter).

CELESTIAL SOHO

The idea of Soho as a unique ‘universe’ created by the various characters and local stars who populate this pulsating London crucible of frolics and fun was the inspiration for a work of art at Royalty Mews situated behind the famous Quo Vadis restaurant on Dean Street.

Transposed onto the classical model of heavenly constellations and celestial maps, the figures on this particular chart of the stars embody the stellar nature of Soho, both night and day.

The astrological theme of Soho in the sky is established on the hefty, decorated brass gates into Royalty Mews on large, circular painted brass panels and continues through a passageway into the Mews courtyard. It is incorporated into elements of the façade of the apartment block within, as well as in the lighting of the space and pavement. All these elements include various Soho-centric, constellation-like maps in the circular form, as well as traditional detailing taken from engraved charts of the night sky.

Punctured through the fabric of the gate, small holes corresponding to particular locations delineate particular figures and objects from Soho life in the same way that constellations form recognizable astrological signs and figures. Seen from the other side of the gate, the same holes correspond to a nocturnal vision of Soho with similar astrological symbols formed from the constellation of Soho’s streets. During the evening, when the gates are closed, light shines through these apertures to form illuminated points on a stellar chart.

As the most impressive, imposing and concluding part of this work of art, the design of the staircase to the apartments ties together the stellar Soho theme with decorative elements taken from engravings of celestial charts crafted to form a notional map of the Soho streetscape, across which appear the stylized characters from the gate designs.

Hanging behind a shimmering perforated mesh, large painted brass features from the streets of Soho, such as the Bar Italia’s clock, the Guinness pub’s Toucan and the Crown and Two Chairmen are visible, or not, according to the time of day, the seasons and the weather, in common with the way that celestial bodies in the night sky come and go as with the constantly shifting life of Soho’s people and places.

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