Tuesday, 06 September 2022

This year, Montcalm East will be celebrating the London Design Festival with a 3 month takeover from East London artist, Lisa King, launching in September. The takeover will feature an art installation at the hotel, a retail pop-up as well as a floral print workshop.

‘The Tallest Flower’ by Lisa King pop-up - September-November
Renowned London-based print artist, Lisa King, will take over Montcalm East for 3 months with an installation entitled ‘The Tallest Flower.’ The takeover comprises a hanging installation of 22 large scale printed silk hangings that will span the hotel’s front facade alongside video projections, workshops and retail space inside. The film and prints were created in collaboration with Lisa’s East London community and therefore Montcalm East makes the perfect setting in which to showcase them.
London-based print artist Lisa King was born and raised in Bangkok. She sees the world through a unique graphic vision and is hugely inspired by nature, fascinated by people, and influenced by her cross-cultural upbringing. She takes an investigative approach to her work, using experimental creative processes to convey an emotional response in print. Her work can be characterised as bold, dynamic and plays with ideas of dichotomy and deconstruction.

Prints
Lisa’s work pushes conventional notions of floral art and print design. The hanging fabric panels will each portray a flower, overlapping another as if dancing on delicately printed silk, showcasing the importance of nature yet emphasising its fragility. Lisa’s flower photography documents her travels between London and Asia, as well as time in her East London studio, shared with two working florists who provide unending inspiration to her work.

Film
With photography as a principal theme that runs throughout the hotel, the reception will screen Lisa’s film throughout the takeover to welcome guests. The film features Lisa’s muses from the London dance community, their shapes layered under Lisa’s experimental inks, immersing colour in water. As a dancer herself, movement and music greatly influence Lisa’s print work. East London based singer Anna Pancaldi and producer Olivier Price have collaborated on the soundtrack piece with lyrics as an ode to Lisa’s late mother.

Retail space
Lisa will bring her coveted floral print products to a retail pop-up at Montcalm East. From scarves to art prints and signature floral t-shirts, customers will be able to shop products normally exclusive to Lisa’s international retail partners, in the UK for the first time. The 100% EarthPositive organic cotton t-shirts are produced in London, using a zero-waste-water printing process. The shirts are made in a The Fair Wear Foundation verified ethical manufacturing facility, powered by green renewable energy from low impact raw materials.

Lisa King Floral Print Workshop - 11am-2pm, 17th September (150GBP per person)
On the first weekend of LDF, Lisa will host a Floral Print Workshop for participants to create their own bespoke piece of art, using real flowers. Lisa's collections are stocked by some of the world's leading retailers and she has collaborated with several leading brands including Fortnum & Mason, United Arrows Japan, Prada, Pernod Ricard, Bergdorff Goodman, and Nike. The workshop will be a unique opportunity to create a bespoke floral print, alongside the artist herself, to enjoy at home.
The workshop will start by learning about Lisa's alternative approach to print design and creating patterns, followed by a demonstration sharing the methods she's developed to create her signature style florals. She will then talk through deconstructing a variety of flowers and arranging them into a pattern, before handing over the reins to participants to create their own. Each design will then be photographed, and later developed and polished into a print-ready design. Participants will receive a high-resolution A3 print of their creation 3-5 days after the event to be able to frame at home.

London Design Festival celebrates and promotes London as the design capital of the world. This year, the festival celebrates its 20th anniversary, returning to the capital from 17-25 September 2022 with a thought-provoking programme of events, exhibitions and installations.
Montcalm East, Autograph Collection, is a new breed of hotel, with a mission to support its vibrant neighbourhood of East London by providing a creative hub for guests and visitors alike. Renowned for its creative partnerships that champion its surrounding neighbourhood, Montcalm East will showcase specially-commissioned textiles and prints by Lisa King for 3 months as well as host a panel discussion on how creative partnerships can benefit hospitality.

Notes to Editors
Room rates at Montcalm East, Autograph Collection, start at £199 on a B&B basis, including VAT and can be booked via the website www.montcalmeast.com.

Montcalm East
151-157 City Road, London EC1V 1JH
Tel: 02038373000

Stay up to date with Montcalm East on Instagram here and Lisa King here. Follow news of the takeover using the hashtag #montcalmxlisaking
For press enquiries, please contact fran@lunapr.co.uk