Whatif Group – Embracing the bottom up approach, culture and local procurement.

(Image Source: https://fernandesmakes.co.uk/pages/connecting-columns)

Whatif Group are currently working with Peel, helping Quayside,MediaCity.

As the first collaboration of many  with Islington Mill and local groups, we put out a Brief looking for local artists to help start a transformation adopting a bottom up, cultural and local procurement approach. This will help explore and evolve a new identity and modus operandi at Quayside.

Local artist, Fernandes Makes was chosen to help us decorate 15 columns at the lower mall level of the Centre, each one hand painted using the shapes of local landmarks and the local wildlife that she had seen on her daily walks around Salford Quays.

Whilst small in the overall context of Quayside, this is the beginning of a change mentality needed to enhance the “ vanilla” approach to management and aesthetic of shopping centres, and grow a more local and relevant transformation.

Peel are really embracing ESG into their DNA and this is symbolic to their objectives.

A much larger Brief for a makeover over of the food court has now been released via Islington Mill and we hope to be announcing our chosen partner from local designers and fabricators early in the New Year.