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Preston artist designs Animate Cinema cladding

Posted on - 5th October, 2023 - 8:00am | Author - | Posted in - Arts & Culture, Business, Politics, Preston City Centre, Preston Council, Preston News
Bonnie Craig with the tenterhooks design for the cinema cladding

A Preston artist has designed the cladding being used for the city’s new cinema complex.

Bonnie Craig was commissioned by developers Maple Grove to create the pattern for the Animate Cinema.

Bonnie took her inspiration from the cinema’s location, in Tenterfield Street.

Read more: Animate Cinema complex to now open in 2025

Its name comes from the tenter fields, where outdoor frames held the woven fabric as part of the production process.

Bonnie, who recently completed glass artwork for the University of Central Lancashire’s student centre, said: “When asked to create designs that explored the area around the Animate site, I was intrigued by the interesting shape and name of Tenterfield Street, as well as the art-deco style design of Lancastria House on one corner of the street.

“I developed a simple shape based on the tenterhook and the street itself. The motif repeats over the metal panels in a grid pattern inspired by the windows, interior wall panels and stonework used in Lancastria House and aims to explore the idea of tension – created in both the tenter frames and the meaning of ‘on tenterhooks’ – and resolution/visual balance.”

Read more: Ceremonial coins added to Preston Animate’s steelwork

The Animate scheme will have an eight-screen cinema, 16-lane bowling alley with gaming zone, five family restaurants, street food hub and a 164-space car park.

An artist's impression of how Animate will look
An artist’s impression of how Animate will look

Leader of Preston City Council councillor Matthew Brown said: “I was delighted to hear Bonnie who previously worked with our university was commissioned to do this work which recognises our architectural and industrial past.

“A big part of what we want to achieve is to make Preston a unique and creative place for all to experience. Our council delivering Animate on behalf of the City ensures we build local resilience and artists like Bonnie and locally based people and businesses participate in the process of development.”

Work on the Animate cinema complex in Preston city centre Pic: Blog Preston
Work on the Animate cinema complex in Preston city centre Pic: Blog Preston

Chair of Preston’s Towns Fund strategic board John Chesworth said: “The Tenterhook design is a sympathetic and welcome acknowledgement of Preston’s industrial heritage and the part Lancashire played in building an economy that was incredibly important to the country’s prosperity.

“While it’s important to recognise our heritage, we must now look to the future and build a Preston known as an attractive place to invest, visit, live and work in.”

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