A special event to commemorate the new ‘Enfield Word Wall’ public art took place on Monday 23rd April at the junction of Palace Exchange and London Road. Where an especially commissioned  plaque was unveiled by ING Real Estate’s Project Manager Alexandra Dod.

The Enfield Word Wall installation has become a key feature of the new Palace Exchange centre and reflects Enfield’s character, history, culture and heritage.
 
To mark the official unveiling, key representatives from developer ING Real Estate, Palace Exchange centre management, Enfield Council, the designers and all those who contributed to the public art installation attended. The plaque includes a transcript of the wording (see complete wording in notes below) and lists the names of the Enfield contributors.

The Enfield Word Wall is a permanent display along upper sections of the central mall’s north façade at Palace Exchange, forming the main entrance between The Town and the new shopping development. ING Real Estate installed the ornate work as the central piece of public art at the new shopping development. The Word Wall measures some 125 metres (410 feet) in length by 4.5 metres (14.7 feet) in height. After dark, an innovative lighting scheme illuminates the wording.

Originally devised and designed by innovative graphic artist Lara Farnham at London based Portland Design, the Enfield Word Wall features a series of interlocking metal letters that form words and phrases reflecting Enfield’s history, culture and heritage. The concept behind the design is to provide a truly unique and relevant piece of public art for Enfield that is borne from the very words and phrases of residents.

Extracts from original conversations were put together to create the content, and is intended to represent all generations and create a snap shot of our time that becomes both an historical and current statement.

Ben Rainford, Managing Director at ING commented “The Word Wall is a truly unique piece of art – a one off for Enfield. We wanted to find a way of making Palace Exchange an extra special shopping destination, and the Word Wall goes a long way to helping us achieve this objective. It strengthens Enfield’s urban grain and identity and is already integral to this new section of the town centre’s architecture. By day or when lit up at night, the Word Wall is an attractive addition to the public realm in Enfield - we are absolutely thrilled with the result.”

THE ENFIELD WORD WALL - wording

Enfield. We speak up about where we live. My Mum liked the fact that I could walk to school through Trent Park and get home via the sweet shop just as dinner was on the table. There were big changes during the thirties - Southbury Road had trams not cars and lots more houses were built. I was evacuated during the war but back in time for the doodlebugs and our Anderson shelter. The rusty flakes used to drop off the ceiling into your eyes at night. Well... we survived, but a lot didn’t. The parish church and the grammar school are the real old nucleus. The market’s been there hundreds of years. Down the high street you hear ‘get your apples and pears!’. You see ten people you know and it’s like ‘hi, how are you?’. Some you don’t know names you just know the faces, but everyone says hello when you go past. Fifty million people later you've said hello to everyone. I could talk for hours about shopping. Yesterday’s fashion makes today’s fashion. Most shops have been here for a long time, and now we’re regenerating the shops we have. Clothes, jewellery, shoes? Oh I love shopping! I really, really do. My favourite night out? It’s being with my friends. Go down the George, or is it the Goose? Or seeing a jazz or blues band with the thumping beat you can hear down the street. I really enjoyed growing up here. Some of my best memories are of chucking ourselves down Hilly Fields in summer on big plastic sheets, in winter on toboggans. Remember when it snowed in Grovelands Park? And then there’s all the greenery. It’s a proper rural enclave - nice, peaceful and calm and it’s only one step away from London. I think when you are young you don't kind of really think how big Enfield actually is - it's your own little world…

Enefelde. Domesday 1086. St. Andrew’s church. Enfield Chase. Enfield Market 1303. Elsynge Hall Grammar School 1558.Town’s street layout 1572. Forty Hall. Gentleman’s Row. Lea Valley Railway 1840. Enfield Town Station. New River. Lee Enfield rifle 1895. The diode valve. Electric trams 1909. WW1. Cambridge Road 1924. WW2. Palace Gardens 1982. M25 1986. Palace Exchange 2006.

We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to the Enfield residents who contirbuted to the Enfield Word Wall:
Chris Jephcott, Ian Bishop-Laggett, Lee Alexanda, Sammi Taylor, Keeley Lascelles, Val Munday, Rosalind Thompson, Lewis Peck, Nancy Brobbey