Sunfast

This project begins at Leaside Yard (Assemble’s current studio) – an expansive, shared space that is central to Assemble’s practice. The Yard is a space of collaboration, experimentation and conversation, where we make and test ideas, and share meals in a spirit of shared authorship and material engagement.

In a time of ecological urgency, with tightening budgets and limited resources, we return to foundational questions: How can we create something impactful with what we already have? How can we work with, rather than against, natural forces?

One of the most abundant and accessible resources we have is sunlight. As the climate crisis accelerates, we are increasingly attuned to its effects. Hotter summers, erratic weather patterns mean reducing our reliance on energy-intensive processes and carbon-heavy materials pushing us to explore modes of building and making where climate and context shape the design and technique. Aiming to harness the sun’s power to warm and illuminate, while learning how to temper its intensity.

This artwork draws inspiration from Lughnasad, the pagan festival of Lugh, the sun god. Marking the beginning of the harvest season, Lughnasad is both a celebration of the life-giving power of the sun and a lament for the waning days of summer. The festivities include offerings of first fruits, communal feasting, dancing, and matchmaking rituals, all conducted with awareness of nature’s volatility, in particular the threats of unpredictable weather and flooding. This tradition of respect and response to the sun is a starting point for our work which channels the human instinct to create in dialogue with precarity and the cycles of light and heat.

This installation explores sunlight as both subject and medium. We will produce a series of large fabric curtains using the cyanotype process: a photographic printing method that uses UV light to create deep blue impressions on cloth. The making of the curtains will take place at Leaside Yard, where sunlight becomes a collaborator in imprinting both time and place onto the fabric.

The final installation will consist of the cyanotype curtains suspended in the gallery space, accompanied by a film. Together, they form a narrative loop: of labour, light, and collective making across contexts.This work invites viewers to consider how we might work with the environment – materially, socially, and spatially – to create art that is both poetic and practical.

Assemble is a London-based organisation who design and make buildings, artworks, gardens, playgrounds, furniture, exhibitions and events. We develop business plans, project strategies and create organisations. We design, construct and manage workspaces. We curate, teach, write books, publish research and lecture publicly. Each of these activities form an interconnected body of work.

Assemble uses design as a tool to respond to the environmental, social and economic challenges we face today. We believe that built examples along with critical reflection are the most effective means to have a positive impact.

Founded in 2010 by a group of friends to undertake a single self-built project, Assemble’s organisational structure has changed shape over the years. We continue to work co-operatively, valuing debate and collaboration as a partnership. We operate using a constellation model, collaborating between ourselves and with others to create award winning projects.