Pedestrian Heart

As consultant artist on a £6.5 million project to refurbish the centre of Darlington, I contributed to a range of design features that transformed the space.

Steps were introduced to connect two parallel streets, enhancing pedestrian flow and unveiling previously hidden Victorian facades. A cascading water feature was incorporated into these steps, echoing the site’s history as a meat market, alluding to the ritual washing down of blood at the end of each market day.

Interactive barcodes were also integrated into the street furniture. When scanned, these barcodes revealed information about the items’ cost, materials, and date of construction, adding an educational layer to the urban experience. Additionally, my sculpture Life Pulse was created, which illuminated based on visitors’ heart rates, creating a vivid, personal interaction with the public space.