Forefront is a new cultural platform founded by Professor Sadie Morgan OBE, co-founder of dRMM, and Dicle Guntas, managing director of developer HGG, with the aim of promoting dialogue between artists, cultural institutions, developers and landowners. The inaugural exhibition 'Living Cornice' features luminokinetic sculptures by Jason Bruges Studio at Forefront's headquarters in Milieu, a new building on Old Street in London.
Forefront offers a glimpse of what could happen if architecture allows art to become an integral part of our spatial experience. For Guntas, it's just the start of a conversation that she hopes has an impact far beyond the central London location. We met with her to talk about the idea, the collaboration and why the boundaries between architecture and art need to be redrawn.
Dicle Guntas on Forefront, the new platform that combines art and architecture
(Image credit: Courtesy of Forefront)
Wallpaper*: Could you first introduce HGG and the genesis of the Forefront initiative?
Tell Guntas: HGG London is a design-led real estate developer creating sustainable places to live, work and gather. We work closely with architects and designers to propose innovative solutions to the technical complexities and limitations of urban sites. I am very passionate about supporting art and emerging artists and have been a supporter of various art institutions and museums over the years.
Since our first development project, The Interlock, I have been very interested in the interface between art and architecture and how they influence each other. In recent years we have had increasingly concrete discussions on this topic, which has resulted in interesting collaborations and orders. This happened organically and not necessarily curated, so I started thinking about how we could purposefully structure these dialogues. That's when conversations with Sadie about Forefront began.
“Living Cornice,” by Jason Bruges Studio
(Image credit: Carin Thakrar)
W*: The current Forefront show features work from Jason Bruges Studio; What was the curatorial rationale for directing your work?
Direct current: Jason is a multidisciplinary artist and designer who combines art, architecture and technology. We commissioned them for a public art project, a light installation to be placed under a doorway in one of HGG London's projects.
What particularly interested us was the way the team responded to the architecture of the building and the physical constraints of the site, while also experimenting with new forms of design through passive kinetic movement. This area was previously unexplored in their work. The exhibition was conceived as a research-oriented showcase and offers an insight into this creative development. The studio translated its ideas into the gallery environment by creating dynamic computational caustics through choreographed metal topologies, animating a space that would otherwise have been quiet.
(Image credit: Carin Thakrar)
W*: Forefront positions itself as a platform that enables mutual exchange between art And Architecture. What does this mean specifically for builders, architects and artists?
Direct current: While we want to promote mutual exchange between art and architecture, we are still developing, experimenting and shaping what that means in practice. We believe that the conversations we have should be shaped depending on the needs of a space, place or project.
W*: Do you see this initiative as a reaction to something that is missing in architectural discourse or practice today?
Direct current: I think we need more architecture programs within arts and cultural institutions; However, Forefront is not a direct answer to this. We hope to create a platform and act as an intermediary to have more of it.
(Image credit: Carin Thakrar)
W*: How do you choose who to work with? Are you looking for artists whose practices already engage with architecture, or is it part of the goal to create new encounters?
Direct current: We are forming a creative advisory board consisting of artists from various disciplines that will support the design of the cultural program. In any case, I find it very interesting to create new encounters and we would like to make this possible through our program.
W*: How do you see Forefront growing? Is this the start of a series, a network or perhaps a model to integrate art more directly into development projects?
Direct current: Can I say all of this!? When we describe Forefront, we explain it as a cross-industry initiative, cultural platform and creative task force. With this position, it aims to provide a reproducible model to integrate more art and culture into space design, while being a space where raw creative ideas can be explored, tested and implemented through the right mix of people and resources.
Professor Sadie Morgan and Dicle Guntas
(Image credit: Carin Thakrar)
W*: Finally, what do you hope attendees take away from this first show and what might come next?
Direct current: Curiosity.
orefront's first exhibition, Living Cornice by Jason Bruges Studio, is on view at Milieu, 134 Old Street, London, EC1V 9BL (visits by appointment)
hgglondon.co.uk