My teenage kids learned more about their local history in half an hour this lunchtime, than their lifetime of me banging on about it. @FifteenMph
Congratulations on an exciting, interesting and innovative urban art and educational project!
J L, from Georgia USA
I have lived in Chiswick all my life and most days I have walked under the bridge at Turnham Green Station, walked into Turnham Green Station or driven under the bridge. From 1958 I walked under the bridge on my journey from Wavendon Avenue to Chiswick & Bedford Park Preparatory School. In 1963 I moved to Bedford Park and travelled to Northfields from Turnham Green to school every day. Marrying I moved back South of the High Road but back again to Bedford Park a few years later. Working in Ealing, teaching in Hounslow, children in prams – how many times have I walked/driven under that bridge? ALWAYS faintly depressing. I also love maps. Your wonderful Timeline has made me very happy – it is outstanding and I compliment you both on all your hard work getting everything together. You have a vision and have made it happen – how I wish more of us could do that. Yours with thanks from a very happy Chiswick resident
Today’s launch of #Chiswicktimeline with @TorinDouglas is without doubt the greatest achievement for #Chiswick in recent years. Congrats all.
Inspired and inspiring. Magically Borgesian. Lifts the spirits Thanks so much.
Inspired and inspiring. Magically Borgesian.. Lifts the spirits. Thanks so much. PC
PM: “We thought it was brilliantly done, in every way – to us, from the crowd, it felt well-attended, happy and thoroughly good. We were very thankful that it was not raining! The murals looked lovely to us, and we look forward to another visit for a ‘proper’ relaxed look.”
AM: “Quite apart from the excellence of the murals, I do know just how difficult it is to get anything done in the modern world, and what superhuman abilities need to be drawn upon to marshall the necessary forces to overcome sloth and indifference. Meanwhile the very helpful Gary from Fuller’s was a real boon to being able to get set up in a minimal time frame, so thanks to him too, plus of course the very many others who gave of their time, expertise and good will.
It was a great, worthwhile and heart-warming community occasion.
AG, Chiswick Pier Trust: “it was a truly wonderful event – very many congratulations to you all! What a truly amazing job you have done in not only conceiving of the plan, but getting it done and creating such a wonderful artwork for all to enjoy for years to come. I have put the link to your website on Facebook and received huge numbers of “likes” and a comment from an ex- Chiswickian that she looks forward to coming back to her old stomping ground and seeing it for real!”
DB: It was also good to see a different image from the usual one associated with the “Healthiest Place in the World” annotation to a lithograph, but, as St Michael’s has already picked up, the view shown (of the back of the Tabard) is by T M Rooke, rather than F Hamilton Jackson, who did the view of the church normally associated with this addition. Each of the nine lithographs was by a different artist.
NL: “What a brilliant day it was yesterday! I thought it was wonderful that so many people turned up, and were interested in the timeline, and talked to people they’d never met before and made new friends – a really great community day and a project to inform and interest us for a long time.”
GG: It is absolutely super-well chosen images and a great enhancement for all and educational for the young. My congratulations and thanks for all your hard work
SL: Getting the whole notion of the Timeline at Turnham Green Station underway and bringing it to fruition with all the money raising, design input and publicity involved is a great achievement. Many congratulations. Today’s opening was clearly a great success. What are you going to do next?
LF: What an occasion today’s Timeline celebration was! Not just a celebration of the enormous achievement of getting this done, but also wonderful maps to look at and enjoy, which will enhance any visitor’s experience of arriving in Chiswick, and such imaginative activities relating to Chiswick – We enjoyed ourselves greatly. How lucky we are to live in W4.
NW: Many many congratulations to you & Sarah on a great achievement, the event was a TRIUMPH & how lucky we were with the weather on the day !!
A wonderful addition to Chiswick’s heritage that will give joy to residents & visitors for generations to come.
I hope you can both enjoy a respite from all the stresses & strains of recent months, all good artists suffer for their art !
I look forward to the press reviews tomorrow, everyone I spoke to was full of praise for your creativity & perseverance in delivering a fine project to the heart of the Chiswick community that will be enjoyed by all.
JN:Agtriumph. And really good fun…Torin Douglas said you were a force of nature- I think you are a miracle -worker. Congratulations
CP: Brilliant Day Karen and Sarah! Everyone had a huge smile on their face!
Thank you for having the idea and the tenacity to go through with this project. It has transformed the space underneath the railway crossing. I could look at the maps and pictures for ever…EW: What a fabulous success! Well done to you and Sarah for organising such a wonderful unveiling party. It certainly brought out the best in Chiswick and was the perfect community event. Even Mother Nature cooperated.
MR: The Timeline in its full glory is really beautiful. Well done to you and Sarah – hope you were pleased with the great turnout. The houses and Chiswick without borders were very popular. Look forward to seeing the finished results – my swallow is flying to Burgundy.
Hope you are celebrating and taking a well-earned break – although I know that there is still work to be done – timelines never end!
JL: Thank you so much for a truly uplifting event today. The organisation and effort involved was extraordinary. It also brought together so many different ages and groups – it truly reflected the warmth and inclusivity of the community.
Simply amazing and great to be a small part of it.
BS: Fabulous job and wonderfully well done. Mother, who has lived in and around Chiswick since 1919 sends her compliments.
I hadn’t seen Peter Blake’s painting before and that is superb.
JM: My wife and I were most deeply impressed by the Chiswick Timeline, mounted so much larger than life size, along the abutments of the Turnham Green Station railway bridge. It’s a fantastic achievement, a great success by any measure of public interest and acclaim. It was wonderful to see so many people taking such a keen interest in the history of Chiswick,set out in maps and pictures, on a grand scale. I couldn’t wait, so I bought us a fold-out book of the Chiswick Timeline at the recommended donation price for us to pore over at home. What a wonderful day, we really enjoyed ourselves.
Wow, what a wonderful day. Wonderful to see families studying the maps, pointing favourite places and family homes out to their children and thoroughly enjoying the occasion. Wow, what a wonderful crowd. Wow, what an ambitious project, and what a wonderful achievement. Hearty congratulations.
Marthe Armitage: You’ve done a great thing.Seeing all the people yesterday and the fun and the imaginative way you did it all and your generosity . From the bottom of my heart thank you. It was an honour to be included. God bless you both.
- Chiswick in Ceramic: Put your House on the Map (art project)
- Chiswick without Borders: Link your family origins to your home (art project)
- Maps to keep or colour in (art project)
- Art trails (sponsored by Horton & Garton)
- Music by local band BGM
- Hot fresh soup from Ginger Whisk
- Freshly baked rolls from Hen Corner
- Chiswick Timeline art biscuits by Bonnie
- Hot cider from Harriet Benton
- Hot gin from Sipsmith
- Pistachio & cranberry biscuits from Hack & Veldt
- Beer from Fullers (& an 18-tonne artic as a stage!)
- Goody bags from Bayley & Sage
- Special edition Chiswick Timeline wine from Borough Wines
- Vintage Routemaster buses from Wint (warm up inside!)