Canary Wharf has been infused with the bold and bright designs of queer artist Adam Nathaniel Furman to celebrate Pride in London.
Furman’s technicolour permanent art installation wraps around the industrial pillars and underside of Adams Plaza Bridge, brightening the commute of tens of thousands of visitors to Canary Wharf each day.
The artist and designer, of Japanese and Argentine heritage based in London, wanted “all communities and backgrounds” to be represented in the public space “in order for everyone to feel welcome”.
Furman said they are inspired to “simply make our urban spaces truly interesting and diverse” as the new artwork was unveiled on Thursday.
They added: “Canary Wharf has fascinated me since I was a child… amazing in its scale, cleanliness, and its futuristic aesthetics… which I love reacting to by layering alternative meanings.”
The permanent installation is intended as the architectural scale equivalent of queer icon Judy Garland’s famous ruby shoes in The Wizard of Oz.
It’s the latest piece to be added to Canary Wharf Group’s free public art collection titled Click Your Heels Together Three Times.
My new permanent artwork “Click Your Heels Together Three Times” at Canary Wharf… pic.twitter.com/XJOMX2WjfM
— Adam Nathaniel Furman🪬 (@Furmadamadam) June 28, 2023
Camilla Mcgregor, Events Manager at Canary Wharf Group said: “Our permanent collection is designed to be as accessible as possible, and a vital part of this is through selecting artworks and creating spaces that truly represent our varied audiences.
“Adam’s celebratory Pride piece joins Lothar Gotz’s Electro-Rainbow, commissioned for Pride 2022, as well as works fromYinka Ilori, Sinta Tantra and Lawson Oyekan.”
Visitors to the area can visit the Crossrail Place Roof Garden and print Furman’s poems for free from a short story station - or visit other short story stations in Canada Place and Jubilee Place.
The six poems explore the context of Click Your Heels Together Three Times and are a personal account of how the artwork was created. Canary Wharf Group has also launched its own digital art guide on the app Bloomberg Connects.
Furman’s work has been exhibited in capital cities across the globe, including Paris and New York, and is held in several museums.
Last May the artist published a Colvin Prize-shortlisted book Queer Spaces – an anthology of LGBTQIA+ places around the world – with Josh Mardell.
Pride Month comes to a close this Saturday with the annual parade.
It will be led by Mayor Sadiq Khan and is expected to attract huge crowds. Last year, London Pride broke attendance records with over a million people showing up to mark the 50th anniversary of the UK’s first parade. Similar numbers are expected this year.
