Canary Wharf Is Chock Full Of Art

Tabish Khan
By Tabish Khan Last edited 98 months ago
Canary Wharf Is Chock Full Of Art
This rugby ball shaped sculpture reflects the flowers, trees and sky around it. It can be found in Westferry Circus Gardens.

Canary Wharf is often associated with big banks and sharp suits. But it's easy to miss all of the art on display.

There are in fact 65 works on the Canary Wharf estate, most of them outside with some inside buildings accessible to the public. We followed the trail around the water, between the tall buildings and through shopping centres. It's largely sculpture, and here are some of our highlights:

An enormous incomplete head of a Centurion stands watch over Columbus Courtyard. There are two other works in the courtyard.

The works aren't always obvious. This gate designed by jeweller Katy Hackney has a celestial feel to it.

This large work by Sinta Tantra is hidden in plain sight. It adorns the side of the bridge conveying the DLR from Canary Wharf to Heron Quays.

Igor Mitoraj's triumphant Centaur stands over a decapitated body. A fitting way to end our tour.

There are a lot of works on display, but we should point out that many are rather bland. And the '65 works' is a stretch as they've included some pedestrian looking railings, benches and planters into that total.

The website isn't fully functional — clicking on the artworks results in an error rather than any details about the piece. The PDF files are useful, but it's best to print them off as it comes in two parts and only one has the map on it. It gets very fiddly switching between the two on a phone.

Most importantly it's free to walk around and a relaxing way to spend a couple of quiet hours on a weekend.

Art on the Estate is free to explore and a permanent fixture of Canary Wharf. All photographs by Tabish Khan.

Last Updated 06 January 2016

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