Created by the London practice of Studio Weave, the Lullaby Machine fills a narrow space between London’s Great Ormond Street Hospital, well known for its treatment of children, and the adjacent Morgan Stanley Clinical Building. It was designed as an entry in a competition set by the hospital to mark the end of an era, as the 80 year old structure is programmed to be demolished within the next decade.
The wall of the entire narrow space of the 10 storey site is now a jumble of meandering shapes representing an orchestra of wind instruments. Made of aluminum, horns, trumpet bells and flutes in silver, gold and bronze twist and turn with the recycled pipework, making it hard to distinguish one from the other, appearing as though the instruments have emerged from the functioning parts of the building.
This ‘secret’ installation can only be viewed from inside the hospital, which creates a unique sense of magic for the children, enhanced even more by the music, which is piped directly into the hospital wards. Intended to have a calming effect of the children, the music was composed by sound artist Jessica Curry. To complete the fairy tale element of the artwork, Studio Weave have created an illustrated tale with weird and wonderful characters which appeal to the imagination of the children of all ages as they read about Fluentooting Whopper, Solilooting Plant, Hushadows and Hahalickles.
