Lancer Square, Kensington’s newest premium development, have revealed an onsite art installation crested by Based Upon, a London based studio comprising highly skilled artists and creatives. The collection, which is open to the public, provides three courtyard sculptures which pay homage to the local area and the fairy tales of Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan, both of which have strong links to Kensington Gardens within their narratives.

The first of the sculptures works in correlation with the architectural floorplan of the courtyard. By utilising angular forms, the sculpture (2.5 metres X 2.5 metres) creates an illusion of pages of a book being flicked through, creating a magical portal in mirror polished stainless steel nestled within the foliage of the courtyard garden. The art represents the portal we pass through when we engage with a fairy-tale – the same threshold in Peter Pan, Neverland, and in Alice in Wonderland, as Alice descends through the rabbit hole. The other two sculptures created by Based Upon are children placed on columns above the square. The children represent our own inner child that dreams of playing in such fantasy realms. Placed at 4 metres above earth, they have been created in Portland stone with applied gold leaf. At first look, the children are reminiscent of tradition British statuary but on closer inspection they are contemporary pieces with intricate detail inspiring a connection between viewer and child. The sculptures of the children represent two aspects of the psyche – one reticent to enter the portal and the other, eager to leap.

Based Upon worked closed with Lancer Square architects Squire & Partners creating a synergy between the installation and the wider residential development. Alongside the courtyard installation, the art studio have produced a feature wall in the development’s spa area made from Tramazite, a resin material infused with metals and pigments which is hand worked through multiple layers. As well as this, Based Upon have designed two reception desks in nickel and bronze respectively, embossed with vintage maps of Kensington, to complement the entrance interiors.

Tim Gledstone, Squire & Partners commented: “Squire & Partners have a longstanding relationship collaborating with Based Upon, exploring the boundaries of their pedigree of highly crafted furniture, into the realms of new artisanal materials and surfaces, for example with the Tramazite used at Lancer Square, an amazing bespoke material created by Based Upon. They push objects into genuine pieces of creative, narrative art. Together, we developed the idea of the courtyard sculptures being inspired by Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan together. The design of Lancer Square is multigenerational apartment-based living. Celebrating the creative genius of Lewis Carroll and JM Barrie (who was a local resident inspired by Kensington), we sought to bring joy to generations who have grown up with these stories as well as those yet to discover them. The sculptures add discovery and magic to the garden, and become part of an appealing art trail, tapping into the wider Kensington and London setting – such as the Peter Pan sculpture in Kensington Gardens commissioned by JM Barrie in 1912.By using Based Upon’s children for the figures – with flashes of gold bomber jackets – this encourages the contemporary onlooker to reflect upon their own imaginations and joy of childhood”

The Based Upon art installation is sits in the Lancer Square courtyard and is open to the public.