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February 16, 2022

Canary Wharf: How Malmin Dental aims to provide relaxation for its patients

We catch up with founder Dr Minesh Talati as the company prepares to open at South Colonnade

Dr Minesh Talati of Malmin Dental – image James Perrin

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The majority of people would be unlikely to name a trip to the dentist among their top places to relax.

Bad experiences, popular culture, the whine of the drill and a certain level of oral discomfort all loom large in the mind.

That’s perhaps why one of the first words that comes out of Dr Minesh Talati’s mouth when we meet is “relaxation”.

The founder of Malmin Dental places a clear emphasis on tackling the anxiety many patients feel through the company’s approach to treatment and its infrastructure.

Its latest branch – set to open in Canary Wharf on February 28 – will exemplify those principles. Spread across a double-fronted unit on South Colonnade, Malmin’s build has seen two full-height floors created to accommodate an extensive range of facilities.

Visitors can expect crisp clean design with plenty of space to wait and work if necessary – the flagship of a dental group that has grown from a single practice to operate multiple locations across the UK.

“My father was a pharmacist and he told me working in healthcare was a good profession – you’ve got a choice, medicine or dentistry, and I picked the latter,” said Dr Talati.

“I attended university in Liverpool and did my masters in Manchester and then, in 2006, I started a new multidisciplinary practice – one of the very few in London at the time – so we could offer everything from simple to advanced dentistry.

“The reason I started Malmin was that when you work for someone else you have limitations.

“Where I was working I could see things that needed to be improved in the quality of care I wanted to deliver to patients in terms of the surroundings, equipment and talent at the practice.

“So we created a fantastic team, lots of whom are still with me and continuing to progress in their careers – many are now professors in their own fields.”

Malmin’s treatment rooms are equipped with TVs

Dr Talati’s first practice saw a run-down building in Farringdon renovated at a cost of £750,000 to create six surgeries and provide a foundation to grow the business and the team.

A few years later Malmin branched out, first in London to Holborn and Barbican and then to places like Manchester, Lancaster and Hartlepool.

“Now we’re opening in Canary Wharf,” said Dr Talati. “Growth has been organic as opportunities arose.

“Patient numbers are increasing and people are increasingly accepting treatment – their demands are increasing.

“Since technology has moved on so rapidly, we’ve grown with that – for example, we’re fully digital.

“We have CT machines in all our practices. Traditionally patients would have impressions taken, but we don’t do that, we scan their teeth, which is much faster and leads to quicker treatment.

“You don’t have to wait for an impression to set and send it to – now, you just send a file. It’s all done rapidly and the scans are more accurate than an impression.

“All of these things are catalysts for opening sites like Canary Wharf.

“Things are very different now to when I first started at dental school – then it was dentures, silver fillings and extractions.

“Nowadays it’s implants, whitening, cosmetic dentistry, white fillings, cosmetic veneers, all these things.

“Now more people than ever come in to have their teeth straightened, some much later in their lives. We’ve seen a 100% increase in people coming in for realignment.

“The best way to describe this is ‘big, patient-centred change’ – those are the right words to use.

“Patients are now asking for more complicated, aesthetic treatments and that’s what we’re providing.”

Patient-centred is perhaps the best way to describe Malmin’s whole approach. Its services and facilities have been designed to offer patients a comprehensive array of options to ensure they’re happy with their mouths and enjoy the process as much as possible.

“No-one really wants to be long at the dentist with a drill running at 3,600 revs in their mouth,” said Dr Talati.

“At our Canary Wharf branch they will find a sanctuary, so as soon as they walk through the doors they will feel relaxed – no anticipation, no anxiety about having treatment.

“As they come in, there will be a little bar area for them to have refreshment – a place to de-stress before and after their appointment or where they can catch up on emails and do some work before they go back to the office. It provides care before and after.

“That helps people to fit treatment into their busy schedules – we don’t want patients feeling like they’re rushing around.

“As for the appointments themselves, all the technology that can be afforded to them will be and that reduces treatment times as well.

“Patients are more demanding now than ever before, but in a good way.

“They want an ambient atmosphere, they don’t want to feel stressed, they want to feel like they’re visiting a spa and to feel as relaxed as possible.

“They also want everything to be done in one place.

“They don’t want to have to visit another dentist, whether they have a simple or a complicated issue – they want it done in a one-stop shop.

“That’s very much how the health service in general is moving now, with GPs bringing services together in-house.

“We’re also able to do many procedures much more quickly because of the technology, make them pain-free and more precise, so the quality of dentistry keeps rising.

“All our treatment rooms are patient-centred – with a TV at the top, where people can watch a film, the news or whatever they want. They can also just listen to music.

“There’s another TV in front of the patient, which allows them to watch the treatment live if they want to do that, and educate themselves about what’s going on.

“Not many practices are doing that, but the concept was taken forward from programmes about surgery, so we’re able to provide this in a dental environment.”

Malmin’s Canary Wharf branch is set to open in February

Treatment-wise, Wharfers can expect a comprehensive menu of services delivered on a timetable to suit their lives.

Dr Talati said: “If you have an emergency, there’s a 24-hour virtual consultation, which they can download and they’ll be able to speak to a dentist.

“The Canary Wharf branch will also offer late nights and early mornings – a lot of our clients are corporate, so we offer a professional discount rate.

“On the estate we will be able to refer you to all the specialists you need.

“Right now we are seeing a very big uptake in cosmetic work – partly because of Zoom, where people have been seeing their teeth all the time.

“Using digital technology, we can show patients their teeth before and after in real time and manipulate the images so people can actually design their own smile – it’s amazing.”

The Canary Wharf branch will also offer skin treatments and a range of IV drips. A full list of treatments and prices is available online.

In celebration of its opening, the company is offering the first 100 checkups booked for free on a first-come, first-served basis – registration is via its website.

Across the company Malmin is also working to minimise dentistry’s impact on the environment – including offering programmes where people can recycled electric toothbrush heads, dental floss containers, flossing sticks and interdental brushes.

Dr Talati said: “We are trying to limit everything, where possible, and to make ourselves as energy-efficient as we can be.

“We’re also looking at recycling toothbrushes and we already sell bamboo brushes, for example.

“At our locations, we ensure there are places where patients can leave their bikes and, in London, we are within walking distance of public transport.

“Even our flooring is recycled, and all these things make a difference.”

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February 4, 2022February 4, 2022

Canning Town: How Wonderful Things hooks Yoga up with co-working

Space at Caxton Works is neighbour and sister company to Keyboards And Dreams

Wonderful Things' space in Canning Town — Wonderful Things’ space in Canning Town – image Matt Grayson

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BY LAURA ENFIELD

A new space that embraces the increasingly blurry lines between home, work and wellbeing is about to emerge in Canning Town.

Wonderful Things will offer traditional Yoga and meditation classes alongside sessions such as sound healing, moon ceremonies and ecstatic dance.

Inspired by the autonomy of co-working spaces, it promises to shun rigid schedules and memberships and instead mould itself around the needs of teachers and students to create a sanctuary from stress.

Set to open in March at Caxton Works, general manager Sean Reilly said it was a “beautiful but no-frills” space run with a laid back philosophy.

The 27-year-old, who is a trained hypnotherapist, has spent weeks talking to therapists and Yoga teachers about what they need.

“People are looking for a space that’s super simple where they can just walk in, no faff, start their class and they know where everything is,” she said.

“They want to know they are in a space that is safe, that they can relax and nothing is going to go wrong so they have peace of mind and don’t need to worry about a thing.

“Creating that is our sole focus now, so we can slip into people’s lives as if we have always been there and they can just click and book and it’s done.”

Sean Reilly of Wonderful Things – image Matt Grayson

She turned to the wellness industry after becoming disillusioned with her hospitality job during lockdown.

“During the pandemic, there was a drastic change and it came to a point where I was doing 12-hour shifts by myself, back-to-back, which wasn’t good for my brain,” she said.

“The Deliveroo drivers and I were best friends. I loved hospitality because I love talking to people and it lost the magic for me a little bit.”

Despite no office experience, she landed a role at Keyboards And Dreams, a co-working company set up by Jonathan Fren with sites in Clerkenwell and Caxton Works.

They quickly discovered a shared passion for wellbeing and have been working together to create Wonderful Things in the unit next door.

The 150sq m space offers 24 Yoga mats as well as straps, blocks, blankets and pillows.

There is also a changing area, kitchen and a dedicated street entrance, which will be accessible via a mobile app.

It is a new direction for entrepreneur Jonathan but a natural one.

The 32-year-old started out in tech as a teen, but a decade later shut down successful web company Rebel Minds after it grew into something he hated.

He went travelling and began renting out the central London office space he had acquired and Keyboard And Dreams was born.

He launched his second space in Canning Town in November 2020, after he fell in love with the area and then jumped at the chance to start another business at the development.

“I took this new space on a year ago without even having an idea of what to do with it because I just really believe in that area,” he said.

“I’ve always wanted to do something in wellness but hadn’t crystallised the idea.

“For the past year I’ve been living in the countryside and my girlfriend is a Yoga teacher, so I’ve been doing a lot of that and meditation and it just clicked at some point that I wanted to create a space in London where people can go and just be with themselves.

“Now, more than ever I think it’s really important that spaces have more than just offices. A lot of spaces in London are made by people with lots of money and that’s all it’s about, especially with a lot of gyms.

“We want Wonderful Things to be warm and inviting, but it will really be about creating a space where people can discover themselves.

“When I go to London one thing I miss is being in a silent room where I don’t feel I’m being watched or have to talk. I want Wonderful Things to be that safe space.”

Jonathan never returned from his travels. He now lives in Portugal, managing both businesses remotely with Lewisham resident Sean on-site.

In addition to being a hypnotherapist, she is studying psychotherapy and hopes to see clients at Wonderful Things in the future.

Yoga mats ready for use at Wonderful Things – image Matt Grayson

She said: “When I first met Jon I told him my idea of the perfect space and he told me about this project and asked if I wanted to be involved. I knew it was where I was meant to be. It worked out perfectly.

“There are so many brilliant therapists looking for affordable spaces to use. Renting a space can be extortionate, so you have to do a joint contract where one person uses it one day and another person another.

“It’s always complicated. You want the focus to be on your clients’ wellbeing, but you spend half the time worrying about whether you can afford the rent.

“We said it would be great to have an all-round well-being hub and make it the kind of space we would want to go to.

“Hopefully, if it goes well over the next year, we will open the mezzanine space with meditation spaces and break out spaces where people can be alone with their thoughts or have therapy sessions.”

Classes will “start with a trickle and turn into a flood” with a schedule being developed over time, but room will also be left for ad hoc events. Teachers will pay a set price to use the space and then be responsible for promoting their classes and deciding ticket prices.

“There’s nothing in the area that really has the same vibe,” said Sean. “We are very relaxed and if you need anything you can just talk to us.

“It’s open to anyone who wants to be there because the space is so adaptable. It isn’t going to be the right fit for everyone.

“If you are looking for a big, mainstream space, this isn’t that.

“Our space is beautiful but has no frills and is all about welcoming people. If that works for your idea in your mind then please come down.”

The space can be used for a multitude of activities – image Matt Grayson

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February 3, 2022

Canary Wharf: How Wallace Chan’s Titans sculptures are set to arrive on the estate

The multidisciplinary creator will show a collection of 10 artworks made from titanium and iron

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Cabot Square in Canary Wharf is many things. A place to sit in the sunshine and eat lunch, somewhere to dip a hand in a boisterous fountain and cool off, a spot to relax with food and drink under the plentiful trees.

But it’s also, increasingly, a site of cultural confluence. Not long ago artist Liz West placed Hymn To The Big Wheel nearby for Summer Lights 2021.

The location was almost within earshot of Boisdale, a venue frequented by Horace Andy, who sang the vocal for the Massive Attack track that inspired the work.

Now it’s the turn of Chinese multidisciplinary creator Wallace Chan to be part of a connection.

His five-metre sculpture Titans XIV is set to be placed in the square as part of his forthcoming exhibition Titans: A Dialogue Between Materials, Space And Time on February 21 and when that happens a loop in time will close.

That’s because it will stand across from Henry Moore’s colossal bronze Draped Seated Woman and, without the English artist’s work as a source of inspiration, it’s likely a showcase of Mr Chan’s work would look very different.

“Starting at the age of 16 as an apprentice carver, I was working mostly with gemstones – coral, malachite and agate, for example,” he said.

“I had to learn to be very flexible, because stones always yield surprises and you have to adapt to them.

“With agate, for instance, every layer can reveal different patterns and you have to keep modifying your ideas because of the restrictions of the materials.

“I had to constantly compromise to attain a sense of freedom while working with them – that experience taught me that you have to be adaptable, that changing what you’re doing is normal when you’re trying to create something.

“At the start I was using opaque stones but I eventually moved on to transparent or translucent ones.

“That’s when I realised it was about more than working in three dimensions, because of the way the light interacts with the stones and the colours and effects that creates.

“I had this idea that I wanted to chase light and capture shadows using different angles.”

This deep dedication to his craft has led Mr Chan to become one of the leading jewellery designers of his generation with a career that’s seen him patent the Wallace Cut as a method of carving refracted designs into gemstones themselves.

His pieces sell for tens of millions of pounds, but when talking to him there’s a sense that he probably isn’t really interested in all of that.

This is a man who, after all, following the death of his mentor in 2001, spent six months on a zen retreat living as a monk – meditating, fasting and tending to the sick and the dying – emerging to state: “I realised that the ability to dream and create was my way of life. I dream, therefore I exist. I create, so I live.”

For Mr Chan his creativity is now and has always been inextricably linked with the materials he works with.

“Even when I was primarily using gemstones, I was already exploring,” he said. “It’s always about the nature of materials, time and space.

“What I am doing today comes from what I did in the past – that will always be the foundation of what I’m going to create.

“While I was focused on jewellery making I became tired of just using gold, silver and platinum. I was constantly looking for new materials.

“I first read about titanium in a newspaper article and spent about eight years figuring out how to incorporate it into my work.

“When I succeeded, it became the embodiment of my jewellery. But I also had a feeling that, like humans, materials should grow – I wanted to find ways to make larger pieces.

“That’s when I went back to a memory I had from 1986, when I went to see an exhibition of work by Henry Moore in Hong Kong. It was huge – there was a lot of fuss about it, so I went to see these sculptures.

“I was really surprised because they were so large. When I was working with gemstones I’d sometimes make carvings the size of a fist, which I thought then were too big.

“But Henry Moore had used metal to create really large works – that was a seed in my mind, a moment of inspiration but at that time I knew nothing about casting.

“Then about 20 years later, I started to use iron, bronze and stainless steel to create works. They weren’t as big as Moore’s pieces, but they were bigger than my jewellery.

“I felt something wasn’t right with them, though – I was looking for a material that would reflect the spirit of the times, something contemporary and futuristic.

“So titanium became the natural metal to work with – it’s way more long-lasting and so it was the perfect material to create something more monumental with.”

Mr Chan's work will be in Canary Wharf until April 8 — Mr Chan’s work will be in Canary Wharf until April 8

Mr Chan’s exhibition in Canary Wharf, which is free to visit and runs until April 8 with the majority of the work placed in One Canada Square, is an opportunity to see the fruits of his intentions.

Curated by James Putnam, it features 10 pieces in total, many juxtaposing impervious titanium with the russet tones of oxidising iron as a meditation on time and its varying effects on different materials.

Three of the works – Titans XIV, XV and XVI have never been displayed publicly before.

“The five-metre sculpture – Titans XIV, which will be in Cabot Square – is about not having a sense of space or time or consciousness,” said Mr Chan.

“It’s about mindfulness, that nothing exists except the moment. It was a big surprise to learn it would be displayed near Draped Seated Woman – Moore is someone whose work I greatly admire.

“I was so shocked and inspired by what I saw at his exhibition in 1986 and I’ve always appreciated his work, but I wouldn’t have ever considered something like this could happen back then.

“I cannot explain it but I feel like some divine power is at work and I can’t thank James and Canary Wharf Group enough for this opportunity.

“I’ve always felt that I’m between cultures. I go to temples, but I also go to churches. I admire sculptures made in the east and also in the west.

“The first pieces I really got to know were the works by Michelangelo so I am influenced by all kinds of things.

“Putting titanium and iron together in my sculptures is a way of combining the most futuristic and the most traditional materials I could find. They make a bridge between past and future.

“Greek mythology has also played a huge role in my works. I found great meaning in these ancient stories so they have always been an inspiration to me.

“When I was carving the winged horse Pegasus I would think about speed and force and I’d try to capture those elements in my work.

“We know the stories of the Titans – the punishments and the fights among the gods – but I really wanted to capture the beauty of them with these sculptures.”

This idea of forming a connection between two places is also present in another way in several of his Titans sculptures.

“When it comes to iron, it’s interesting,” he said. “We’ve known about it as a material for 5,000 years – it’s always been a part of our lives, our architecture, our tools and in our daily routines.

“But I remember when I was a child and my father was teaching me how to write the Chinese character that means craft and work. It looks like a capital I, the most common kind of iron beam.

“He told me it was like the sky on top, the earth underneath and the humans standing in the middle between the two.

“It means that as a person you have to stand on your feet and you have to be grounded. Secondly that you have to reach for the sky and that you have to understand you’re a bridge between the two. That’s why I use it in the structure of my works.

“When people are looking at any of my sculptures I want them to know that it’s always a projection of themselves. People should ask themselves if they are discovering or being discovered?

“It might look to them like there is light and that there are shapes and forms, but in a way they’re communicating with what’s in front of them – it’s something mutual.

“If the audience wants to take something away from this exhibition, then I hope it will be the idea that we can always transcend as individuals.

“It is possible to pursue many different roads at the same time, and it’s always fine to go from one scale to another – you can always be multi-disciplinary. Knowledge can be shared among different sorts of creations.

“I started carving 50 years ago and I’ve never stopped trying to expand the materials I use or the scale of my work and I work on many different projects all at once.”

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February 3, 2022February 3, 2022

Blackwall: How Republic is placing future talent at the heart of its growing campus

Trilogy Real Estate head of asset management Laurence Jones on the project’s present and future

Some of the extensive public space at Republic

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“We’d always had the talent of the future at the forefront of our minds while the whole complex was being designed,” said Laurence Jones. “To see that finally coming to fruition is hugely gratifying.”

The head of asset management at Trilogy Real Estate is in a buoyant but humble mood as we chat about the present and the future.

His employer, in partnership with LaSalle Investment Management, is at the helm of Republic London, a project to regenerate four unloved and unlovely buildings around Clove Crescent near East India DLR, after acquiring them in 2015.

The project is entering its sixth year and appears in rude health with 2021 seeing 120,000sq ft let to organisations – around 30% of the Docklands market over the last 12 months.

While Trilogy’s strategy has been to deliberately target a diverse range of tenants, an emerging trend as a place ideal for education has emerged.

The University Of The West Of Scotland (UWS) and Anglia Ruskin University have both increased the size of their operations on-site, together occupying more than 125,000sq ft across the scheme’s Import and Export buildings.

York St John University is also relocating to Republic in a move to expand and consolidate its existing courses and apprenticeships while allowing it to launch seven new postgrad programmes and professional education courses at a 25,000sq ft facility.

Trilogy’s Laurence Jones – image Matt Grayson

“We’ve seen the emergence of higher education as a key sector and that really underpins the ethos of what we want to be – an innovation hub,” said Laurence.

“We want universities sat next to business, sat next to real, meaningful community engagement.

“When you have all those elements collaborating with each other, benefiting from that proximity, you get an environment that’s greater than the sum of its parts and huge opportunities.

“In terms of winning these expansions and clients, it’s been very helpful to work alongside the organisations already based here.

“People kick around this idea of landlords and tenants being partners but at Republic we really do mean that.

“We’re here from first viewings to agreeing terms and ensuring fit-outs are undertaken effectively because we want to work with operators and make sure they have the maximum chance of success.

“We’ve created a fantastic environment here but, crucially for the educators, it offers something more. You have business – the City and Canary Wharf – close by.

“The endgame for most of the graduates and postgraduates here is employment, so to be in a place that lends itself to getting direct work experience for their CVs is incredibly powerful.”

The Greenhouse at Republic – image Matt Grayson

Republic isn’t simply about providing big buildings for large organisations, however. Laurence and his team are determined to accommodate businesses ranging in size from a single entrepreneur to thousands.

He said: “In partnership with UWS and The Trampery we’ve created The Greenhouse which essentially provides incubator space.

“It has a real focus on offering a support network and a space for local businesses to make that leap from an idea at home to making it a reality.

“Equally, it gives a platform for some of the university students here to start trying out their entrepreneurial ideas.

“Once someone has a credible business with a track record, they’re going to want staff and their own front door.

“So, just before Christmas, we created five micro studios. They’re a very simple prospect – 500-to-1,000sq ft – an all inclusive rent for SMEs and startups to come and occupy space on a relatively flexible basis.

“It’s a short-form lease that a business can sign there and then on the day. One is already let to Your Parking Space and, as its business grows, we can accommodate the firm’s expansion.

“We see that journey for businesses as being absolutely crucial to our campus – that there’s an entry point for everyone.”

Trilogy is also sharply focused on opening its campus up to the local community and visitors from further afield, with a range of places to eat, drink, exercise and even shop, framing its Wi-fi enabled water gardens.

Open and trading are the likes of physiotherapy and fitness centre Myoset, exercise powerhouse F45, independent bakery and cafe Sweet Nothing Bakehouse, ice cream parlour Gelato A Casa and recently opened specialist whisky bar Black Rock.

“The local community is, for us, very important,” said Laurence. “We’ve always strived to ensure Republic isn’t just perceived as a business park.

“We created the public areas here because we want people to come and use them, to understand what’s here and I think our big objective for 2022 is to make certain there continues to be a huge amount of community engagement to de-mystify things.

“The early indications are the next 12 months will hopefully deliver some degree of normality and we’re super excited about people coming back.

“There will be experimentation for many organisations who will be asking what their working practices will look like and what their use of space will be.

“But the early indications are good and that’s fantastic news for the food and beverage businesses and the fitness companies we have here. There’s a lot of excitement.

The Export Building's full-height atrium — The Export Building’s full-height atrium

“We’re 94% let in the Import Building and 55% let in Export and we want to keep the leasing momentum going and finish the job that we started.”

Looking further forward, a planning application for the second phase of the project is currently under consideration.

Trilogy and LaSalle hope to build homes for rent, student accommodation, more office space and a data centre on-site.

“That will help us in our ambition to crack the night time economy here,” said Laurence.

“Part of that will come from having beds on campus for students and other residents, but equally by making sure there are more people coming here from the local area.

“We always knew we needed provision here outside traditional working hours because otherwise it could just be a 9am-5pm destination.

“We see this is as the next logical step, especially given the universities we have based here now.

“The student body at Republic is incredibly diverse – many are mature students and there are those from overseas.

“We are a centre of gravity for them and we want to be somewhere that they can call home.”

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February 2, 2022February 3, 2022

Hackney Wick: How Potters Thumb gives people the chance to play with clay

Potter Mark Ciavola talks ceramics, education and creating a new kind of porcelain out of waste glass

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I don’t immediately realise it, but as I raise the cup of tea to my lips at zero waste restaurant Silo in Hackney Wick, they’re touching an object conceived and created by the man sitting beside me.

Mark Ciavola is the ceramicist behind Potters Thumb, which offers clay-based classes and memberships at its studio space above the zero waste venue.

He also supplies it with its hand-thrown cups, from which we’re drinking and that’s not the only reciprocity, but more of that later.

Lamenting the shrinking presence of pottery in schools, he is determined to pass on the knowledge he’s accrued from a lifetime spent around ceramics.

“At a very early age I showed signs of interest and my parents saw that and guided me,” said Mark. In fact, it was his mother, Anna, who sadly died last year, who had the biggest influence on Mark.

“She forged a career as a potter at a time when the craft was dominated by men, teaching, nurturing and inspiring numerous others in their native Malta and seeing her work enter the island’s National Collection.

“I was fortunate to travel a lot with her, visiting potteries across the world, but mostly in Europe,” he said.

“So I had the pleasure of meeting all these potters in Greece, the UK and Italy.

“That included Phil Rogers in Wales who, along with my mother, took me under his wing. He’s been hugely influential in the contemporary ceramics world and has pieces in the British Museum and collections all over the world.

“He suggested courses for me, so I went to Harrogate College where I did my national diploma, and then to Cardiff to do my degree.

“I’ve been so lucky to be able to learn new techniques and skills from potters such as Michael Casson and Terry and Beverly Bell-Hughes.”

Having originally set up shop in Brighton, a lack of empathy from his landlord during the pandemic saw him return to Malta rather than take up the Government’s generous invitation to re-train in cyber.

His relocation to Hackney Wick came via a message from Silo owner Douglas McMaster, who he’d met and supplied when the restaurant was also based in Brighton.

Offered the chance to create a new material in partnership with the restaurant (look left for more on this), he moved back to the UK, plugged the potters wheels and opened the doors.

“When I was working in Brighton I didn’t want to make pottery that was exclusive and unattainable for the general public,” said Mark.

“I wanted to get my work out to the people as quickly as possible and in abundance.

“I was thinking of who would use crockery like that and that’s how I met Doug, through creating ceramics for Silo.

“I’ve been doing that ever since and for other restaurants and it’s snowballed from there.

“Giving lessons is very important for me. It is part of the structure of pottery and keeps us sustainable as well so we can keep doing what we’re doing.

“Obviously we have a responsibility to spread this craft around – it’s a dying trade unless it is encouraged and there’s not much of that coming from the state at the moment, so it’s an uphill struggle. Nevertheless, I am determined to pursue it.”

Part of Mark’s drive to get more people handling clay is down to his belief in its wider benefits.

These, he said, extended beyond the creation of ceramics and spoke to fundamental things about what it means to be human.

“Personally it’s been doing me the world of good for about 37 years,” said Mark.

“I believe that in contrast to the fast-paced world that we live in now and, because we are more aware of our mental health and other sensitive topics which affect us, ceramics, clay, pottery is art therapy.

“It transports you, because working with clay involves so many of your senses – with your hand-eye coordination you’ve got this vision of the future, imagining your finished item while you’re still making it, the clay catching up with the line you’re seeing in the air, and all the while you’re touching and manipulating the material.

“It cuts you off and gives you that space that we all need. Today, humanity deliberately and consciously deprives itself of mental states that preserve our mental health.

“Crafts and art are slowly being cut from the curriculum of our schools, colleges and universities and there are cuts in funding because the Government doesn’t have any faith in the creative industries.

“Cooking, for example, used to involve 30 or 40 minutes of preparation and then the savouring of the food you’d made.

“Now it’s two and a half minutes in the microwave and a plate in front of the laptop.

“With pottery, people feel they’ve missed out and they want to come and experience it and practise it.

“As children, no-one teaches us how to play with playdough – it’s just given to us and instinctively we know what to do. It’s something in our DNA and, even as adults, our primal instincts are alive and kicking.

“Pottery gives us a sense of satisfaction that we’re able to do something and this gives us energy to pursue other goals.

“That’s why we’re giving lessons here with heart, in a creative comfortable spot where you don’t need to invest heavily in machinery in kilns or materials.

“You can come here and use them. I really want to share my experiences, help develop other people’s creativity and pass on this dying craft to others.

“Thankfully ceramics is getting more publicity with TV shows like The Great Pottery Throw Down and an increasing number of people are getting interested in it as it becomes more mainstream.

“But the best thing about it is that it’s a great way to escape the madness we’re living in today.”

Potters Thumb offers a variety of classes and workshops at its studio, based in the White Building at Hackney Wick. These include sessions on hand building techniques (from £35) and wheel throwing (from £55).

Memberships to use the studio are also available (from £150), with kiln firing services also available.

Finding a greener way to deal with glass

Douglas founded Silo with the premise that the restaurant would operate without a bin, producing no waste.

So he’s enlisted Mark’s help in a project to create a new material from the single-use glass that flows through the venue to improve its environmental impact.

He said: “From day one that was always the headache.

“Even when recycling it you need pure silica to make new bottles and that’s the best case scenario.

“The other problem is that systemically used glass doesn’t end up where it should – getting into parks, canals and landfill, where it takes thousands of years to break down and does a whole lot of environmental damage.

“But there isn’t really a better way to get all these wonderful liquids here, so I approached Mark about using it as a raw material.”

Mark said: “No good potter would ever throw away decent material – clay is a gift from Mother Nature so we treat it with respect.

“I looked at this problem with a ceramacist’s hat on, rather than as a glassmaker.

“There’s silica in both glass and clay and that was the catalyst to find a solution and marry up these two materials.

“We crush the bottles, pound them until the particles are the size we can manipulate and then mould it as glass porcelain.

“There’s lots of experimenting, but we can turn this into something useful. We’re working on flat objects at the moment like tiles and plates.”

Watch this space.

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February 2, 2022

Thamesmead: How Peabody’s Southmere scheme is transforming Abbey Wood

Housing Association has 30-year plan to refresh a massive slice of London connected to Crossrail

An artist’s impression of Peabody’s Southmere Village

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A t present, the journey from Canary Wharf to Abbey Wood takes a little over 40 minutes.

The various Frankenstein options available involve much chopping and changing – the Jubilee line, the DLR, the 486 bus and Thameslink can all come into the equation. It’s anything but direct.

But, if the seers are to be believed, all that’s about to change. When Elizabeth line services start running (perhaps as early as March, if the optimists have it right), Abbey Wood is set to be the end of the line for Crossrail’s central and eastern section.

That will put it squarely in touch with a whole swathe of central London, which is currently much trickier to travel to. The Wharf itself is expected to be around 11 minutes’ ride on a single train.

Why does this matter? Effective transportation is the lifeblood of regeneration. In east London, this is best demonstrated by Canary Wharf itself, which struggled as a project until the Jubilee line extension arrived.

What such connections mean for residential areas is possibility – the ability to rapidly access different parts of the city and the things they offer makes living in an area a richer experience.

It’s also a two-way street. Visitors come back the other way, further enlivening a place and befitting its residents.

Peabody’s Matt Foulis at the Southmere marketing suite – image Matt Grayson

No wonder Matt Foulis of Peabody is smiling. London’s oldest housing association took over ownership of Thamesmead, served by Abbey Wood to the south, in 2014 and has a 30-year plan to regenerate the area.

But as project director, Matt’s enthusiasm isn’t drawn solely from the opportunities Crossrail will bring.

It’s because he already knows what the area has to offer and can see how it will continue to develop over the course of the next three decades.

“We are under way on a the delivery of around 20,000 homes at Thamesmead,” he said.

“We completed our first development – The Reach – a couple of years ago, we’ve just started on a site at Plumstead in partnership with Berkeley and we are currently delivering what we’re calling Southmere Village – phase one of our regeneration of south Thamesmead near Abbey Wood station.”

When completed, Southmere will see 1,600 homes built across four sites close to Crossrail, new public space in the form of Cygnet Square and The Nest – a library and community centre – as well as commercial space for shops, restaurants and bars.

The scheme offers a mixture of properties available for social rent or to buy either on a shared ownership basis or via private sale. Residential blocks Starling Court and Kestrel Court are due to complete in the coming months, with strong sales reported.

A collection of one, two and three-bedroom shared ownership properties is set to launch at Crane Court on February 12.

Matt said: “Our properties have sold really well – I think people are really buying into the wider vision for Thamesmead.

“Over the last two years in particular, everybody has woken up to the importance of green space and proximity to water and the impact they can have on your life, your health and your wellbeing.

“That’s what we have here – Thamesmead has five artificial lakes with Southmere the biggest and they’re connected by a network of canals.

“They were designed as a surface drainage system but it means we have these fantastic assets that people can enjoy, surrounded by really impressive green spaces.

“Peabody owns, operates and manages all of these areas so we’ve got overall control of everything that’s going on in the area and that has a real impact for not only the people we’re trying to bring to the area, but also existing residents.”

Beyond the infrastructure, Peabody is also working to boost the cultural capital of Thamesmead, perhaps best known for its Brutalist architecture.

This served as a backdrop to Stanley Kubrick’s dystopian cinematic nightmare A Clockwork Orange and, more recently, in the music video for The Libertines’ What Became Of The Likely Lads.

Matt said: “We’ve got a huge programme that we’ve been operating for the last four or five years.

“That includes things like a regular one-day festival curated by local residents in Southmere Park, which attracted 6,500 visitors last year.

“People who may never have heard about the area or visited it are starting to hear about it and it’s starting to draw people in, which has been fantastic.

“We’ve also set up a culture forum so people living here can help shape what goes on locally.

“That’s grown and grown – we’ve supported theatre productions and a live performance of the film Beautiful Thing, which was made in Thamesmead a few years back.

“It’s these sort of things we want to do – grass-roots, community-led projects that are really accessible.

“We’ve had dance troupes, drummers and gymnasts perform in housing estates – things that are visual and tangible that people from all backgrounds, young and old, can really enjoy.

“This year we have a project called Fields Of Everywhen, which will see two artists inflate and fly an enormous hot air balloon made from tapestries that capture the personal stories of local residents.

“They spent two years working on it and finding out what makes Thamesmead tick. These activities are being driven by Peabody and we’re here for the long term.

“We expect there to be around £10billion of investment in Thamesmead over the course of the 30-year plan.

“For example, with funding from the Greater London Authority, we’ve refurbished a building called the Lakeside Centre on Southemere Lake to provide artists’ studios, a cafe, a training kitchen and a nursery – that’s being operated by Bow Arts.

“Next to that we’ll shortly be letting a contract to build a boating and sailing centre to be run by the YMCA, which has operated on the lake for 30 years.

“It’s about making sure we’re providing amenities for everybody to enjoy with activities like kayaking, sailing and paddleboarding.

“Eventually we’d really like to open up the canal systems so people can use them to move around Thamesmead in addition to the cycle routes and pavements.”

The shared ownership properties set to be released at Crane Court offer prospective buyers open-plan living areas, balconies and floor-to-ceiling windows in distinctive brick-clad blocks within easy walking distance of Abbey Wood station.

“They will be fantastic places to live,” said Matt. “We’ve tried to maximise views over the lake and newly built Cygnet Square where people will have all the amenities they need on hand.

“There’s car parking in secure courtyards under the blocks with podium gardens that are communal but for residents only.

“There will also be an on-site concierge service with a residents’ lounge that people can use to work from if they choose.

“Combine that with the restaurants and cafes, which will be opening around the square later this year, and that will give people a lot of flexibility if they’re not going into the office.

“I’ve already seen people logging into the Wi-fi on seats around the lake with their coffee and doing the first two hours while sitting by the water.”

When investing in property, there’s also the future to think of and Peabody has big plans for the wider area including an extensive development to the north west of Southmere along the banks of the Thames.

There it hopes to attract an extension to the DLR across the river from Gallions Reach, further boosting local connectivity – not a bad time to get in on the ground.

Prices for shared ownership properties at Crane Court start at £91,500 for 30% of a one-bed, based on a full market value of £305,000.

Two and three-beds start at £118,500 and £153,000 respectively for the same proportion, based on full market values of £395,000 and £510,000.

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January 27, 2022

Canary Wharf: We ask Kate Maxey how Third Space’s offer benefits every member

The strength and conditioning master trainer explores the club’s breadth of facilities and classes

Third Space strength and conditioning master trainer Kate Maxey – image Matt Grayson

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Kate Maxey is singularly well placed to recognise and relish the importance of depth at a gym when it comes to enjoying exercise and building fitness.

Growing up, much of her life was about hockey. Her exceptional level of skill and talent with stick and ball led her to represent England up until the end of her time at Loughborough University on a scholarship to play the sport.

“It was pretty full on,” said Kate. “But I loved it and it was a massive part of my life and my friendships.

“My older sisters played, so that’s probably why I got into it and it was what my life was about for a long time.

“But then I got to the point of wondering whether it was really what I wanted to do – did I want to play hockey forever?

“Then it hit me – I loved the sport, but in training for it I was always made to do stuff for my performance on the pitch, not necessarily the things I wanted to do for my own fitness, lifestyle or stress relief.

“That’s when I decided to explore different things. It was a journey – I could have given it all up and not done anything at all – but exercising was such a part of me.

“That’s when I got into personal training and found that what I wanted to do was to inspire other people to find what works for them in terms of fitness.

“Having become a personal trainer, I then started taking classes – something I especially love because they’re a bit like hockey, a team activity.

“That’s my big thing, helping create a lifestyle for people and supporting them in finding something they love to do, whether that’s in a class setting or in the gym.

“I still play hockey now to a good level and I really enjoy it, but it’s more a social thing – I had to find what I love and training people is what I want to do.”

Today, that journey has led Kate to the position of strength and conditioning master trainer at Third Space in Canary Wharf, overseeing more than 50 group exercise instructors.

Kate takes on a Ski Erg in The Yard at Third Space – image Matt Grayson

Her role includes responsibility for developing that team and the classes it delivers as well as coaching group sessions herself.

“Fitness shouldn’t be seen as something you just do if you’re an athlete,” she said.

“If you hated sport at school, that doesn’t mean you can’t go to the gym and find something you love doing.

“Classes are about teamwork – everybody in the room might have different motivations but they’re all trying to achieve something, they have that shared aim.

“At Third Space we design the sessions so anyone can come along and get the best workout for them. The camaraderie and the class environment really helps motivate people.

“Everyone’s doing the same things at the same time – you might not know anything about them, who they are or what they do – you’re all just there to look after yourselves, to get fit and maintain it and nobody is judging what anyone else is doing.

“That’s the fantastic thing about my job – you get so many different dynamics.

“Some people will come into class and they’ll want to sit at the back and not want too much attention, because they just want to do their thing.

“Others will be more competitive and they’ll use that to motivate themselves. Both are absolutely fine.”

Kate demonstrates a pull-up – image Matt Grayson

While the extensive class list at Third Space – which includes everything from spinning to weightlifting, crossfit, combat and Yoga – presents a multitude of possibilities for members, Kate said the true attraction of the club lay in the breadth of the range of services it offers and how they complement one another.

“Third Space offers everything in terms of facilities, but that in itself can be daunting,” she said.

“So the best advice I can give when someone joins a place like this is: ‘Talk to someone’. There are staff all around with all the personal trainers and academy and class instructors and that might seem intimidating.

“But this is our world. Everyone has had their own journey to get here and we all, without exception, want to help members.

“When people are new to a gym, over the first couple of months, the most common thing they do is to absolutely smash themselves five days a week.

“Then their body starts to break down, the stress becomes too much and they can get injured. That’s why you need help.

“Workouts are a stress on the body, but we’re experts in managing that and allowing people to find what they love doing and what they need to do.

“Personal training can be especially great for that. A good PT can help you with the things you don’t enjoy so much and that will help you avoid injury and perform better in the activities you love.

“They can create a plan for you that will help you develop strength so you get stronger and condition your body.

“Then with classes I’d suggest trying a range of things.

“You might go along and absolutely hate it, but it’s only 45 minutes of hell, and then you’ll know – you can cross it off the list and try something else if it’s not for you.

“First it’s about safety – members can use classes to learn how to move correctly.

“You often see people writing down what they’ve done so they can replicate it again on their own.

“Then classes like Yard Strong, for example, allow people to try things they might not have done before, which is always exciting.

“It has 10 stations with exercises like log bars and farmer carries – exercises that leave people feeling they’re really accomplished something.

“For members who want to get stronger, classes like these are there for them to lift in a safe environment with a knowledgeable instructor who can help them develop and keep an eye on their technique.

“In a class like that it’s more about working in partnership with the trainer.

Kate says Third Space offers a wide range of classes – image Matt Grayson

“The important thing is that for every class you can stay within your own zone – you can interact as much as you like.

“Likewise, if someone has suffered an injury or is restricted in what they can do, it’s our job to adjust what we’re offering to include them, to provide alternatives so they will still get something from the class.

“We will always strive to go above and beyond what’s on offer elsewhere so every person who comes to Third Space achieves what they want to and is able to train with us.

“That’s why, for me, this is the ultimate gym.

“You have your home, which is your first space, your place of work which is your second space and then we’re your Third Space.

“Then within that there are so many spaces at the club, whether you’re a member who wants to find a quiet corner, put their headphones on, do their workout and not be seen or whether it’s a member who wants to take part in a big class in The Yard.

“The great thing about Third Space is that you have the facilities to do all those things, whether it’s taking part in a dance class, going for a swim, using the climbing wall or doing a treadmill class. It’s about what you want.

“Then what’s key is finding something that is sustainable for you and that you enjoy.

“That way you can make good habits, build slowly over time and achieving those goals becomes so much easier.

“Here, you can come and know there’s always someone who is there to help you get through your workout and make the most of it.”

Kate takes on the air bike on the gym floor – image Matt Grayson

Membership of Third Space Canary Wharf costs £180 on a rolling monthly contract.

Personal training rates at the club are available on request, with a discount for new members on their first two sessions.

Group-wide membership for all clubs including City and Tower Bridge costs £210 per month.

New members get two guest passes, a meal or shake at Natural Fitness Food, 25% off their first treatment at the Canary Wharf spa and an ongoing discount of 5% as standard.

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October 27, 2021

Woolwich: How Woolwich Contemporary Print Fair continues to evolve

Lizzie Glendinning talks art, factory spaces and continuing to deliver work people can easily own

Print Fair co-founder Lizzie Glendinning

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BY LAURA ENFIELD

Shiny golden phalluses are not a conventional start to a business. But why be dull? The glimmering appendages provided the catalyst for the birth of Woolwich Contemporary Print Fair, which is set to return from November 11-18.

It brings 700 original artworks to the area featuring famous names, hot new artists and images of everything from folk tale-inspired etchings, to the naked human form and abstract pieces created using control and chance.

“We were invited to bring a cultural activity to Woolwich as a one off,” said Lizzie Glendinning who founded the Fair in 2016 with artist husband Jack Bullen.

“We installed this quite controversial Italian sculpture by Samuele Sinibaldi in the former Canon Carriage Factory.

“It got people talking as it featured golden phalluses on a tree. People either loved or hated it, but we were invited back nonetheless.”

The couple already ran Brocket Gallery together and had gained attention for their New Collector Evenings, which used original print to encourage people to talk about and buy art.

Inspired by that ethos they ran a Kickstarter fundraising campaign, contacted printmakers they admired and set-up the inaugural fair, with no budget, in two months.

“Filling a huge abandoned former factory was a huge undertaking and we thought original print would be the way because there wasn’t anyone doing that specifically with contemporary work,” said Lizzie.

“The redevelopment of the buildings was something we really wanted to mirror in the history of printmaking, the industrial nature of it and the process.

“Jack and I are big fans of the Venice Biennale. They have used fine art to regenerate old factories. We thought: ‘How come no-one has done this in London because the buildings are just incredible?’.

“One of the reasons we decided to invest in the area was because of Crossrail – my background was working in Mayfair galleries and we wanted to bring the best of that genre here.”

The Arc Of Knowledge by Samuele Sinibaldi

The fair has now usurped their gallery business and takes 12 months to plan. Lizzie will be breaking boundaries again by curating the entire event from more than 300 miles away in Northumberland.

The couple moved there just before the first lockdown and Lizzie is now pregnant with their second child so unable to make the long trip to the capital.

But in a fortuitous twist, the cancellation of last year’s event means they already have the technology in place.

“It was a last-minute decision in September 2020 to cancel,” said Lizzie. “Our whole year had gone towards building it and there were lots of people involved and some wanted us to keep going.

“But it would have completely ruined us because we went into lockdown. So we’re really lucky we decided to go online.

“We worked with a company called Kunstmatrix and were one of the first Fairs to do an interactive walk through design.

“We had a lot of other big fairs calling us to ask about it and people recognised we had done something quite unique.”

Lizzie will use the technology to curate the artworks online and then her team will install them over two days at Woolwich Works. The physical fair is returning with a flourish, taking over the newly restored former Fireworks Factory at Royal Arsenal Riverside.

“Woolwich has really evolved in the time we have been there,” said Lizzie. “We are going into our third building in six years because the other ones have all been redeveloped – this one is stunning.

“The abandoned building we were in before was very cool because it had that gritty aesthetic, but when the artworks are of such great quality, it really elevates them to be in this gorgeous building. It’s a fresh start and feels like we have stepped up to a new level.”

Detail from Love Of Seven Dolls Princess by Liorah Tchiprout

Half the fair will be booths curated by specialist galleries and the other half filled with works chosen from an international open call.

As a result, the fair represents around 350 artists directly and takes commission from their sales.

“It’s unique in terms of art fairs, which generally rent booths to galleries so they only give access to artists who are already represented,” said Lizzie.

“We had about 4,000 applications for the open call and a panel of industry experts, including Gus Casely-Hayford from V&A East and artist Andrew Martin, chose the work.

“It makes it a completely democratic process and a big surprise for us, while keeping it fresh and fair.”

All the artists who applied are eligible for a new Art In Business scheme, which offers online workshops in marketing as an independent artist, wrapping and packing work, biographies and personal statements.

The fair is also running the Young London Print Prize for the second year, bringing printmaking workshops to 1,000 children in London primary schools including Greenwich, Thamesmead and Hackney.

A panel of sixth form curators will choose a shortlist to showcase at the event, with an awards ceremony on November 11.

Detail from The Caramel Contessa by Toby Holmes

Lizzie’s own love of print started as a schoolgirl thanks to her art collector father and she wants to share that passion with everyone.

“The risk with the term ‘print’ is people think its just digital and printed off a computer,” she said.

“But there are mediums like etching or lithograph, monotype, so many different styles and textures and technical application of ink or paint. You need to see it in real life to appreciate the layers and paper. If it’s on a screen it’s flat and you don’t see the intricacies or subtleties.

“The tactile nature is something we have tried to reinforce through the mantra of the fair, which is about the evolution of technical process and pushing the boundaries and reinterpreting these traditional processes.

“A lot of people will come thinking it is like posters and then they will see artists at work and appreciate the technicalities a bit more.”

The fair is laid out with stories and themes for people to follow to help make the event more friendly and engaging.

Detail from The Spirit Of The Three-Piece Pine by Evgeniva Dudnikova

“I first did that in 2019 when I had just had a baby,” said Lizzie. “I was really into illustrative art and things that were beautiful for children because I just wanted Daphne to be surrounded by beauty.

“This year Jack has done a couple based on literature and books and fantasy. I think that’s because he reads all these books to her.

“What we don’t want is to make it too academic. We don’t want to frighten people with terminology that might be inaccessible.

“We want people to recognise a narrative running through or maybe make one up for themselves.”

Lizzie advised fledgling collectors to grab a drink, talk to the artists and pick a theme to follow rather than trying to view everything.

They are giving visitors a helping hand with an art and interiors section, a talk on women in print, curator tours, family printing workshops and artist demonstrations.

A New Collectors’ Evening on November 12 will include advice from industry leaders, a DJ set and complimentary cocktails. Online they will be using #findartthatfits so people can snap a pic of their space and receive suggestions of works that might fit into it.

There will also be edits of prints under £100, £300 and £500 and the Fair has partnered with OwnArt so buyers can pay for a print for as little as £10 a month.

“The nature of print is that you can get an original artwork at a lower price or enhance a collection by bringing in a really well known name,” said Lizzie.

“It is a less intimidating step into contemporary art and you can’t buy bad at the fair because it has all been curated or chosen by these industry experts. We really want to become the place to go for contemporary print.”

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