Walking along New Inn Yard in Shoreditch, the black metal roller shutter to a loading bay is open, while the adjacent windows are secured with iron bars.  The view through the doors is not of delivery vans, packing cases or storage racking but of art, in what must be one of the more unusual gallery spaces in Shoreditch, off the street but part of the street.

The sign outside “building site” are ambiguous.  Is this one of the many building sites across Shoreditch, or is this something different?  Is it a private studio, a store for art, or a public gallery?  On peering in through the doors, the full space becomes evident; aesthetically it is the unfinished street version of the White Cube gallery, with its services all hanging off the ceiling and its location is perfect for artist Angela Lyn’s project to invite people in to take part in a dialogue about art and human relationships.

Angela’s studio overlooking large Himalayan cedar trees had been disrupted by the arrival of mechanical machinery and building workers, with whom she formed a bond. As an artist, she became interested in their activities; they became interested in her work, both creating art.

“Looking onto the building site, I am struck by what I see, struck by the making of it all, piece by piece, day by day, by men at work, that relentless human effort, happening all over, all at once, last but not least my own, right here, right now, in the midst of it all, painting” (Angela Lyn 2015).

The project “building site” presents paintings based on observations of the dirt, the dust, the noise, the activity, the materials, the men and their achievement as Angela Lyn explores what it takes for people from different backgrounds to engage with each other.  In addition to the paintings, a long table provides an opportunity for conversations and activutues and choreographer Balbir Singh and his dance company along with composer and musician Jesse Bannister explore the connections between painting, music and dance. In addition, a group of art students from east London have been invited to workshops to expand their own artistic awareness “an opportunity to experience individual contribution as the building material for shared experience…..this project attempts to re-examine the position of the artist, not to produce art, but to create possibilities to expand ourselves in our capacity to engage as human beings…..perhaps the focus being to give, rather than to get”. (Angela Lyn)

A fantastic use for a space to engage with people who would not normally visit art galleries.