The images above depict a series of creative studios produced from disused tube train carriages in Shoreditch known as Village Underground. Village Underground is an evolving ambitious project to create an international platform of creativity and culture. This unique venture began with furniture designer Auro Foxcroft whose talents were being held back by the high cost of studio workspace in London and therefore decided to design his own low cost studios for local creative’s hunting for cheap workspaces. The idea came to him whilst travelling by train to Switzerland; he contacted the London Underground who was happy to sell him some carriages that were now redundant so that they could be put to good use. The recycled underground carriages were then transformed with the use of sustainable materials and eco friendly interiors and with all the seats and flooring taken out and replaced with desks by the windows the carriages became relatively spacious innovative studios. The studios are rented on a non profit making basis making them extremely cost effective workspaces for a diverse range of artists and designers. The project has attracted a close network of creative individuals including film makers, jewellery designers, scriptwriters, photographers, fashion designers and artists. The benefits of this close nit community of artists and designers is that they can easily collaborate with each other by working in the same environment and can comment on each other’s work. The tube carriages are placed on the roof of an unused Victorian warehouse and the permission to do this was given on the basis that the expanse of raw derelict building space beneath would also be put to good use, so therefore the Victorian warehouse was transformed into a multi-functional venue that is hired out for cultural events such as gigs, fashion shows and film screenings.
Bibliography
http://london.unlike.net/locations/303583-Village-Underground
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