Cricklewood Town Team has kicked off the festive season on the Oaklands Road pedestrianised area with a bespoke art installation, Light Play, which is mounted on the wall of Pedro’s Cafe and synchronises light with vibrant music tracks. The lights follow the pattern of the painted mural on the wall accompanied by an upbeat mix of lively sound.
The artwork will bring Oaklands Road to life over the winter season from now until the end of January 2022. Light Play was commissioned as part of the Oaklands Road Playable Street project and was created by Laura Kriefman, Zach Walker and Lee J Malcolm for Hellion Trace Ltd.
Cricklewood Town Team obtained funding from the London Borough of Brent’s Neighbourhood Community Infrastructure Levy fund (NCIL) in 2019 to develop the Oaklands Road Playable Street project, which was devised to address long-standing problems associated with the congested environment, air pollution and lack of public space in the Cricklewood town centre. The creation of a public space at the top of Oaklands Road was supported local residents and achieved by closing off vehicular access from the Broadway to Oaklands Mews, removing high levels of illegal parking, idling.
Other elements of the project included a study by Airlabs to understand the local airflow dynamics of the site and determine the best means of intervention. Pollution continues to be monitored using sensors installed on the site and Cricklewood Broadway.
A living wall was also installed outside the new residential development on the street as part of the project, and was funded by Rainbow Properties, the developer of the block of flats.
Udenson Caldbeck Associates (UCA) developed and project managed the Oaklands Road Playable Street Project on behalf of Cricklewood Town Team.