Electric House,
296, Willesden Lane, London, NW2 5HT.,
was once used as the Head Office for Network Housing Association
(NWHA.) At the start of the original project in October 2012, the landmark Art Deco building had
been empty for 4 years and it was subject to a controversial planning application. In the interim, the owners NWHA
worked together with Brent Council Planners and in conjunction with The Meanwhile Space organisation facilitated its use
as a local Creative Arts Hub. This co-incided with the almost simultaneous and equally controversial redevelopment plans of the
Willesden Green Library Centre and the consequent closure and loss of the home of the long running Brent Artist's Resource (BAR)
Community Gallery. Local artists immediately engaged with the new situation and there was an unprecedented outburst of Arts activity.
Electric House ran as a Creative Hub for a mere 9 months until just before the planning application was eventually approved for the new
Electric House in August 2013. The Stitched Offices installation began life as one of the many interactive art installations for "The what would
you do in this ____." project on the first floor of Electric House. "The what would you do in this ____." lasted for a dizzy 3 weeks and was orig-
inally curated by the artist and architect Marcella Leone in collaboration with Sally Buchanan. Beginning in March 2013, this project included
the rapid renovation and transformation of the entire first floor into a visionary interactive arts and performance area which was recorded
on a Time - Lapse Film. The project culminated in two Community Arts events - the Opening and Closing Shows - on 23rd and 30th
March 2013 respectively these shows were overflowing with live entertainment acts and interactive art bringing together a wide
cross section of the community in Willesden Green. The Life cycle of Electric House was brilliantly recorded in a film by
Nicholas Motte entitled Lights Out. The Stitched Offices Installation comprised about 20km of recycled linen thread
sewn through the walls of 3 offices on the first floor of Electric House. When the original project closed the
artist was given restricted access to extend the installation. Brent Council officers gave permission
for 30 minutes of public viewing during the Electric House Closing party on 25th June 2014.
The old Electric House then closed to the public and in October 2013 final access was
granted allowing rescue of about 65% of the installation. The installation was
extracted and underwent extensive conservation work ( see news )before
the building was then eventually demolished in March 2014. The new
Electric House comprises 25 new homes with space for retail use
on the ground floor; it is due for completion in 2015. In early
December 2013 a small part of the Stitched Offices were
re installed at the "Without Boundaries" show for The
Free Painters and Sculptors Winter Open Show
entitled at The Menier Gallery in Southwark.
In December 2013, the first Stitched Offices
Transplant won the very first Roy Rasmussen
Award. This threaded installation made timely
use of the last days of the old office spaces
on the first floor of the original Electric
House on Willesden Lane in
Willesden Green. It was an
entirely intuitive response
to the last moments of a
place. It was a unique
invitation to consider
the awareness of the
inheritance of the
energy which was
(once) present in
that ordinary office
space. An invitation
to interact with the
traces of normally
imperceptible energy
pathways. Unconscious
pathways routinely created by the previous office workers
whom had unbeknowingly left them behind. These remnants
of previously hard worn communication channels were channels
waiting for their moment
to be re-awakened and
signalled out for a brief
period of momentary
access in a time
interval before
the first capsule
and framework
was to be
lost.