So… our campaign to let you know how excited we are to be bringing a new experience to London starts…… NOW! Here’s today’s press release in full:
London’s Pleasure Gardens:
Where high art and sub-culture meet, collaborate and mutate
• An entertainment destination for Londoners and tourists alike, focused on community, culture and entertainment
• A new 60,000m2 site with capacity for 40,000 people
London’s Pleasure Gardens (LPG), a major new arts and entertainment destination in the heart of East London, will open on the Queen’s Jubilee Weekend, 1 June 2012.
Starting next June, LPG will champion the creativity that helped London win the Olympic bid; it will become home to London’s creative talent and showcase great British talent to the world.
For 200 years Pleasure Gardens, with their twinkling lights and otherworldly atmosphere, were central to London social life. Long before the festivals of today, they were places where people converged to meet, debate, listen to music, watch shows, admire paintings, walk, drink, and flirt. From Keats and Hogarth to Mozart and Handel, Pleasure Gardens were the go-to places for cutting edge culture and subversive creativity.
LPG will recreate this festival atmosphere as an ever-evolving creative playground for both young and old alike. You might walk your dog at dawn, take the kids to play mid-morning, meet friends for lunch, treat it as a gallery visit in the afternoon, meet after work for a cocktail, or catch a gig from a world-class band under the stars at night.
Depending on what day, and what time of day you choose to visit, LPG will offer something for everyone; from local community to London and international tourists, from high art to sub-culture and entertainment.
Winner of the Mayor of London and Newham Council’s ‘Meanwhile London’ Competition, LPG will be London’s newest cultural destination, with three stated aims;
1. Community; to help kick-start the regeneration of the Royal Docks; creating jobs and a community hub for the surrounding Boroughs in 2012 and beyond
2. Culture; to celebrate the rich diversity of high art and cutting edge culture that East London is famous for.
3. Entertainment; to support the cultural legacy of London 2012 through the provision of a multi-functional entertainment destination for all the family.
A 60,000m2 site within the Olympic Red Zone, opposite the London ExCel Centre, LPG will transform Pontoon Dock from its current state as a derelict site to an ever-evolving creative playground for both resident Londoners and tourists alike.
On announcing LPG at MIPIM on 8 March 2011, Boris Johnson, Mayor of London commented; “ These winning ideas will bring the sites to life and help the Royal Docks become a thriving new economic hub for the capital…With the eyes of the world on London in 2012, the ingenuity of these schemes will show the world just what the Royal Docks have to offer businesses, entrepreneurs and visitors.”
Clive Dutton, Executive Director for Regeneration, Planning and Property at Newham Council commented; “The London Pleasure Gardens concept is brilliant and will bring extraordinary creativity and vitality to the Royal Docks. It is a significant stride towards making this part of London an international destination, both in the Olympic year and beyond. It will become a spark to ignite the Meanwhile London project not only across Newham but as a national sign of what creative people can contribute to a community when given half a chance and plenty of encouragement”.
The history of the area shows that the Royal Docks itself had its own Pleasure Gardens between 1851 and 1884. It was collective cultural experiences such as these that made this period in London’s history famed for its pioneering social and creative spirit.
The winning team behind LPG has a history of mixing cultural disciplines to create unique and influential events. Amongst others, they have delivered major arts projects including the 1948 Hoxton Street Party, Liverpool Biennale, Shangri-La at Glastonbury, Cordy House, Mutate Britain and many more (see Editors’ Notes).
Deborah Armstrong, Creative Director at LPG commented; “Our aim is to help London to deliver on the promise to use the Olympics as a chance to showcase British cultural, as well as sporting, talent on a global platform. We will champion local talent and celebrate the incredible melting pot of creativity that is alive and kicking in London every day.
“London’s Pleasure Gardens will bring together real talents across music, art, food, fashion and film, give them a spiritual and physical home, whilst showcasing the very best of London’s creative communities to the world.”
A three-year project, London’s Pleasure Gardens has already secured funding to deliver on its cultural vision for 2012 and beyond.
Major community, cultural and commercial partners have already signed up, with more to be announced in the coming weeks and months.
Current partners include;
• London Development Agency (LDA)
• Create (London 2012 cultural liaison for the five host Olympic Boroughs)
• Design for London (part of the Mayor of London’s office)
• The Arts Council
• Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA)
LPG will feature:
• Landscaped walkways and sculpture gardens
• The wilderness meadow and beach
• Water attractions including floating cinema and illuminated fountains
• A 36,000m2 outdoor live events space
• A multi-arts dome venue
• The Hub night gallery and dance arena
• A floating cocktail lounge and bridge of boats
• A boutique art hotel and restaurant
• A glass café (designed by RIBA)
• Outdoor spectaculars, including fireworks
• Video mapping and large scale video game projections
• Animation performance
• Interactive installations
• Children climbing area
• Adults playground
• And much, much more…!
During the Olympic and Paralympic Games next year, a festival atmosphere will prevail, with 40,000 people a day channeled directly onto the site after leaving events and award ceremonies at ExCel London.
The Pleasure Gardens became immortalised by the finest artists, composers and novelists of the day – London’s Pleasure Gardens will replicate that excitement of discovery for both Londoners and visitors to London in 2012 and beyond.
