The perfect backdrop to showcase arts heritage

Formerly the renowned Colston Hall concert venue, Bristol Beacon is a Grade II listed arts and concert venue with a mission to be, by 2030, the UK’s first net zero location of its type. As part of the rolling programme of events, design studio Northover&Brown was commissioned to design and produce an art installation depicting the venue’s story.

Extending to some 14metres long within the iconic Lantern Foyer, the installation tells the story of the venue’s history through digitally drawn artwork and animated film. Creative Directors Mel Northover and Alison Brown adopted an innovative approach to realising their concept: a bespoke steel structure provided future flexibility and stability for housing panels of MDF which were finished in Armourcoat’s Polished Plaster Istria.

With its combination of aged lime plaster and recycled crushed marble, Armourcoat Istria gives tonal variation and the semblance of surface movement, reinforcing artist Mel’s desire to create an artwork that feels alive and continuously moving and draws the viewer closer. Armourcoat Istria gave her an ideal base onto which her artwork could be printed in fine detail and film screens that support the storytelling could be structurally integrated. More than 400 artists and events that have influenced the Beacon’s 150 year history are interwoven into the installation, from classical music to punk.

As a natural surface finish that is 50+% made up of recycled material, mould and mildew resistant, Class 1 fire rated, with zero VOC, Armourcoat Istria not only delivered Northover&Brown’s criteria for the aesthetic for the display but was in compliance with Building Regulations and the eco ambitions of Bristol Beacon.