David Annesley at the Smithson Plaza

As custodians of Smithson Plaza – which launched in 2018 following the restoration of the iconic brutalist Economist Plaza built in the 1960s – Tishman Speyer is announcing two initiatives to celebrate the sixties roots of the destination this Autumn. From 23 September 2019, Smithson Plaza will welcome the installation of three public sculptures dated from the 1960s, by octogenarian British artist David Annesley. Following this, Smithson Plaza will see the opening of Locket’s, an exciting new and 1960s inspired restaurant from Wilton’s Holdings later in the autumn.

Annesley’s three works selected for display – Godroon, 1966; Untitled, 1969 and Untitled, 1969 – capture a revolutionary approach to sculpture-making in the 1960s and date from a similar period to Alison and Peter Smithson’s plaza, originally completed in 1964. Casts of two of the three sculptures to be on display in Smithson Plaza are a part of the Tate Collection, including an edition of Godroon currently on display at the newly reopened Tate St Ives in Cornwall. Created in wafer-thin painted aluminium and painted steel, the works combine symmetrical elements with a sensitively balanced colour palette. They convey a sense of weightlessness enveloping the surrounding space outlined by their linear forms. With these open-form metal sculptures, Annesley draws upon his experience flying as an RAF pilot.