The relocation and restoration of the Dorothy Annan telecommunications murals

Abstract

This paper details the story of Dorothy Annan’s telecommunications murals and how they came to find a new home at the Barbican. Born circa 1900, Annan was a prolific artist and in the latter part of her career took on many public mural commissions as part of the post-war rebuilding effort. Her work encapsulated the incredible optimism and creativity of the time, but sadly only three of her murals exist today. One of these is her 1960 telecommunications ceramic tile murals commissioned by the Ministry of Works for the Farringdon Road Fleet Building — home to the world’s first international telex when it opened in 1961. The building itself fell into disrepair due to fast-moving technologies, but Annan’s murals remained well-loved by locals and passers-by. In 2011 the murals were awarded Grade II listing, thanks to a high-profile campaign by the 20th Century Society to save them from destruction when the building itself was scheduled for demolition. The City of London decided the Barbican estate would be the most appropriate new location for the murals, less than one mile from their original location and itself a Grade II listed example of post-war Brutalist architecture. In 2012 the removal, restoration and installation project began. Led by Jackfield Conservation Studios, C’ART and Cathedral Works Organisation (CWO) carried out a delicate operation to safely remove the tiles for restoration, while AHMM architects and C’ART devised a new mounting and lighting system that rose to the challenge of taking a listed artwork and installing it within a listed architectural space. In 2013 Annan’s beautifully restored murals were successfully installed in their new home, where they are enjoyed and celebrated by a new audience and will hopefully remain for many years to come.