At the Urban Farmer, Alicja Patanowska’s ‘Plantation’ inspired a lively debate themed on sustainability in the urban landscape, from seedlings to landscapes. The esteemed panel, comprising of Tony Chambers, Founder of TC & Friends and former Editor-in-Chief of Wallpaper*, Lady Lucy French OBE, CEO of Fleet Street Quarter BID and Alicja Patanowska, creator of the Plantation Installation discussed how the smallest acts of cultivation can grow to transform our urban landscape.
Alicja, motivated by communicating the true sustainability value of seedling growth and reducing the need to buy new, shared her learnings from seedling growth experience to empower others to follow her methods. Plantation, an installation of 200 hand-made porcelain vessels presents individual plant growth through the process of hydroponic planting as a live artwork.
‘Nature and community are the most important parts of the city, and as a community we must work together to make a change; says Patanowska, ‘I would love to see more nature in the city – more trees plants animals, but this is now a new luxury – it’s all our responsibility to action this’.
Alicja Patanowska, creator of Plantation and Lady Lucy French OBE, CEO of Fleet Street Quarter BID.
Photo: Elżbieta Piekacz, courtesy of Polish Cultural Institute
Alicja Patanowowska, artist of Plantation | Photo Alka Murat
The conversation discussed how the smallest acts of cultivation can grow to transform our urban landscape and how we can all nurture more resilient living cities. The Urban Farmer Project is an initiative delivered in partnership with Landsec and London’s Community Kitchen that uses waste food to not only feed people, but as a tool to develop skills in the community. Located in the Fleet Street Quarter it is an example of Landsec’s forward-thinking approach for vacant retail space, repurposing empty units with meaningful usage for the wider community, thereby nurturing more resilient living cities with inclusive, innovative and sustainable area; a core ambition of all the partners.
‘We are the custodians of a rich area that has been transformed over 2000 years and are creating a community for the future’, says Lady Lucy French, CEO of Fleet Street Quarter,’ The Urban Farmer project has been a coalition of the willing to get people to rethink how they live their lives, each putting sustainability at their centre. If we all share best practise we will see real change with climate action’.
Photo: Elżbieta Piekacz, courtesy of Polish Cultural Institute
Plantation is part of the Urban Farmer Project, an initiative by the Fleet Street Quarter delivered in partnership with Landsec and London Community Kitchen, with support from Square Mile Farms.
Over the coming years this dynamic area will unveil extensive urban regeneration and present numerous activations of creativity and community, building on further successful examples of sustainability in the London urban landscape from seedling to cityscape.
Tony Chambers, a resident of the Fleet Street Quarter stated, ‘The passion I have for this area is deep and I want it to get back its energy and keep growing’.
The evenings Polish cultural influences continued with an impromptu mini-concert of opera and carols by ‘Young Artists of the Global Talent Programme – National Opera Studio London’, Aleksander Kaczuk-Jagielnik ( Baritone) and Blanca Graciá Rodríguez ( Repetiteur) and by live music produce by DasDas Box and performed by Miss Blanche with catering specialities by Polish Restaurant Ognisko and infamous Kavka Vodka cocktails.
Plantation is co-produced with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland, the Polish Cultural Institute in London, Let’s Art Foundation, and On & On Designs as part of preparations for the 2025 UK/Poland Culture and Creative Season organised in collaboration with the British Council.