Supermarkets, public art and a little bit of Yorkshire

As last weekend a little bit of London arrived and departed on the same day so, today a little bit of Yorkshire came to Hadleigh, Essex.

Morrison's supermarket, with it's roots and Head Office in Yorkshire, is well established in the town. One of many in fact: Lidl, Iceland, and now Costcutter which is set to take over the former Woolworth's store that has lain empty for a number of years. I wonder sometimes how a small town can sustain so many supermarkets.

Morrison's are redeveloping their existing site and the neighbouring (former car showroom) site next door as part of the Hadleigh's Regeneration Masterplan due to be completed in 2013. As part of the redevelopment, Morrison's have commissioned two artists to create two works of 'Public Art' for the store and car park. I met the Yorkshire-based artists today as they undertook a day's consultation with the people of Hadleigh, asking for their views and ideas.

Consultation with the public in Morrison's car park, Hadleigh

Graham Ibbeson chats with Morrison's architect

Graeme Willson's website describes him as "probably the UK's leading mural artist, with a distinguished track record which stretches back over 25 years" and Graham Ibbeson famous for his hugely popular Eric Morecambe statue created for the Tern Project in Morecambe. Two artists with an undeniable track record having worked together on similar projects for Morrison's elsewhere in the UK.

I chatted to both artists today as well as the architect for Morrison's and urged them to look beyond the London 2012 mountain-biking event and the ubiquitous iconography of Hadleigh Castle for inspiration. Whilst both undoubtedly important there is more to Hadleigh, the town especially, which is steeped in history with a strong sense of identity and community.

I am most interested in the role art can play in urban regeneration and I will watch with interest how the projects progress and how the people of Hadleigh engage with it.

I was put in mind today of Ian Yearsley's Hadleigh Past which proved a great source of information and inspiration for my own projects earlier this year. And yes, inevitably, it has a picture of Hadleigh Castle on the cover!