A new exhibition unveiled at the Tate Modern in response to the migration crisis has been given a local seal of approval by Anglia Decor – the Rayleigh-based company which has helped bring a new thought provoking piece of artwork by Cuban artist and activist Tania Bruguera to life.
Described by the Evening Standard as “possibly the most radical and unsettling intervention yet”, the installation in the Turbine Hall presents migration as a never-ending crisis and reveals a photographic portrait of a Syrian refuge hidden beneath the floor.
The portrait depicts the face of Yousef, a young man who left Syria in 2011 and is now studying biomedical science and working for the NHS. His image is hidden under a heat-sensitive floor.
When enough people come together and gather on the floor, the portrait is revealed.
Local decorating and flooring installation company, Anglia Decor, played a key role in bringing the new installation to life.
Anglia Decor’s Managing Director Steve Massey explained: “We were contacted by Tate Modern’s events team who were looking to create a heat-sensitive floor which would reveal the image of the Syrian refuge. We liaised with them on all aspects of the brief and with artist Tania Bruguera, who had a clear picture of how she wanted the work to be carried out.
“To start with plastic floor tiles were fitted to protect the Turbine Hall’s original floor. To that, our specialists added a primer coat and two coats of a heat reactive thermochromic paint, essential to bringing the creative idea to life.”
Steve added: “When the floor is touched, it reacts to body heat and changes colour. The artwork has also been sprayed in thermochromic paint so it is revealed once touched.”
Anglia Decor applied the protective coating to the 3200m2 ground floor and added a matt protective coating to a smaller 400m2 section to protect the artwork underneath.
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Steve Massey says it has been a very exciting project for the South Essex firm, which has specialised in the preparation of concrete floors and industrial floor painting for over 15 years.
He said: “We were delighted to work on this project and are very proud of the way it has turned out. We’ve had some great feedback already. The exhibition will run until February 2019 so there’s plenty of time to go and see it.”
Since opening in 2000, over 60 million visitors have visited the Turbine Hall.
