Painted in Porcelain
Enfield, North London
May 2023
The 34Bus Collective for this project are Amy Dolan, Alistair Leys, Amaechi Anolue and Liv Wright
34Bus kicked off 2023 as toilet painters; commissioned by Enfield Council. The brief was to paint three refurbished toilet blocks in three parks across Edmonton. These were being opened for public use again after a long period of disrepair. Initially, we were asked to paint one wall. The team soon decided to go a step further, painting all the available surfaces of these architectural gems. Each toilet received a wrap-around design, breaking up any squareness and accentuating their grand, ornamental elements .
Jubilee Park, Edmonton, North London
The architecture of these blocks inspired the concept of the works. The buildings’ quaint, delicate roofs and alcoves had us considering art that covers porcelain. Thoughts about the ceremonial, ritualized nature of drinking tea became a humorous juxtaposition to the everyday function of a public toilet. A mug of builder’s tea and its connection with ‘Britishness’ also felt like a fitting celebration of the heritage surrounding the environments we were painting in.
Craigs Park, Edmonton, North London
This theme runs through all three murals, uniting them as a triptych. Aswell as similarities, each block has subtle differences, as does each park. Each design exaggerates and heightens the building's original architecture, while also capturing the everyday happenings and individuality of each park. Images painted in porcelain are romanticised; we came to the conclusion that public toilets can be romanticized too and took joy in creating beauty in these unlikely places.
Tottenhall Rec , Palmers Green,
North London
In Collaboration with
SUPPORTED BY
