The Mobile Arboretum – London Festival of Architecture 2022

By Aldgate Connect BID, in partnership with London Festival of Architecture

01.06.2022

June 2022 – Present

Aldgate Connect BID supported the London Festival of Architecture (LFA) 2022 in the development of The Mobile Arboretum.

The installation is inspired by the collective history of the London markets. Aldgate is still a hub of activity and trade in London with the buzzing fabric markets of Petticoat Lane. Markets are full of brimming barrows and carts, overflowing with produce, delicate frames hung with drapes of fabric, pinstriped and patterned canopies that shelter the people of the market. Food and fabrics mingle with entertainment, music, trade and conversation of mingling communities.

This project plays with the idea of an urban forest, but it needed to be more than mere planters. It had to reflect the sites history and be a part of its present.

The Mobile Arboretum – a series of market “carts” or “barrows” are filled with saplings to create a new home for trees. The barrows will house the trees/saplings over the summer, taking care of them until it is time to move them on to their new homes, helping to see the legacy of a real urban forest at schools and community gardens in and around the neighbourhood.

The Mobile Arboretum was originally located on the south end of Middlesex Street in Petticoat Lane, and has now been relocated to a new home outside of Urbanest on Vine Street, Aldgate.

More Projects

Aldgate in Winter Festival

City Benches – London Festival of Architecture 2021

Lifetime Fashion Exhibition

London Metropolitan University’s Fashion department presented an exhibition to showcase couture skills that re-define the production and appreciation of clothing.

Lifetime Fashion Skills Workshop

Following the Lifetime Fashion exhibition, London Metropolitan University hosted a week-long workshop to introduce sustainable fashion skills chosen by people who had attended the exhibition.

Local Heroes for Aldgate in Winter

As part of the 2022 edition of the Aldgate in Winter Festival, we asked the Aldgate community to nominate people who go the extra mile to support others in Aldgate.

Petticoat Lane Bunting Collective

The Aldgate Connect BID, City of London Corporation, and the London Borough of Tower Hamlets were proud to present the Petticoat Lane Bunting Collective

Petticoat Lane Community Banners: Fabrics of Society

Members of the community came together and fed into the designs of fabric banners, which reflect upon the rich cultural heritage of the area.

Petticoat Lane Digital

Petticoat Lane Digital was a collaborative project between Aldgate Connect BID and the local authorities, stakeholders, businesses, and community to provide a digital presence for the area of Petticoat Lane.

Petticoat Lane Dining Quarter

As a response to the pandemic, Aldgate Connect BID supported the collective of restaurants at the south of Middlesex Street through the implementation of an outdoor dining area in the cul-de-sac end of the road.