HIMACS and James Latham Join Forces With Steuart Padwick At The LDF

Two five metre-tall interactive sculptures made using HIMACS, designed by multi-award winning British designer, Steuart Padwick, will be erected in King’s Cross shortly, for this year’s Designjunction event as part of London Design Festival.

This important piece of public art addresses the stigma around mental health, an ever-growing issue in the UK, and is part of the initiative Time To Change. These striking cuboid sculptures have been skilfully formed using Douglas Fir to convey a warmth and humanity.  Gender, age and race neutral, they take two contrasting poses, one is carrying the burden on their shoulders, the other, resting against it, highlighting that whilst the burden may not be overtly visible it is often not far away.

The imposing ‘concrete’ blocks - representing emotional burdens - have been manufactured from HIMACS natural acrylic stone, in colour G555 Steel Concrete, supplied by main UK distributor, James Latham and fabricated by Preston based, We Are Limitless Limited (WALL). 

When a visitor approaches one of the figures, a proximity sensor is triggered and the HIMACS cubes will appear to crack, emitting a glow of light.  Then, because the sculpture’s burden has been reduced by engaging with the visitor approaching them, it begins to talk, emitting poignant, uplifting phrases, written by a selection of notable poets, writers, actors and mental health ambassadors. Talk To Me is a hopeful piece, reminding us that, through communication with one another, the weight so many of us carry can be lessened.

Extensively used in architectural projects of all kinds, HIMACS solid surfaces offer a robust, smooth, non-porous and visually seamless surface which can be backlit and thermoformed to give a striking appearance.

Commenting on his material selection, Steuart Padwick said, “I wanted a quality material that was easy to work with, looked like concrete, could be machined to let light through and was outdoor friendly, and James Latham recommended HIMACS which has proved to be the perfect solution.”

For all visitors to the London Design Festival and Designjunction, James Latham is holding a one-day HIMACS walk-in workshop on 19th September at their Design Showroom in the Business Design Centre, Islington, just one tube stop away from Kings Cross. Here, visitors can learn more about the product and witness inspirational demonstrations of thermoforming, sublimation and more.

Designjunction, which runs from 19 – 22 September and is part of the annual London Design Festival, connects the world’s most renowned design brands, with the world’s leading architects, interior designers, specifiers and buyers.

#makeitlathams - Win a bespoke HIMACS seat, designed by Steuart Padwick

James Latham are encouraging people to post images of themselves interacting with the figures across its various social media platforms using #makeitlathams, with a prize of an exclusive, bespoke HIMACS seat, designed by Steuart Padwick, for the best one.

Find other HIMACS installations at the London Design Festival: 

• An interactive carousel from FDDS in HIMACS

• The Ripple Table, made with HIMACS Ultra-Thermoforming