TWO new sculptures made of PEFC-certified timber have been greeting locals and commuters at London's Kings Cross in a bid to further the conversation about the capital’s mental health.

The 5.5-metre interactive sculptures are made from PEFC-certified Douglas Fir from French timber supplier Piveteaubois and are supported by France-Douglas – a key association promoting the use of French Douglas Fir. 
 
Award-winning British designer Steuart Padwick has teamed up with Time to Change – the mental health campaign run by Mind and Rethink Mental Illness, to create the sculptures – ‘Talk to Me’. The sculptures were situated along King’s Boulevard in Kings Cross until 22 September as part of this year’s designjunction – a design festival taking over key locations in the newly-renovated King’s Cross area as part of The London Design Festival. Talk to Me is a hopeful piece, reminding us that through communication with one another the weight many of us carry can be lightened.

Padwick designed the sculptures in PEFC-certified Douglas Fir to convey a warmth and humanity in stark contrast to the solid cuboid shapes and ‘concrete’ blocks, which in reality were made from natural acrylic stone.  
 
Alun Watkins, PEFC UK’s executive director, said: “It is fantastic that Steuart Padwick has chosen to use PEFC-certified Douglas Fir. Not only is timber a sympathetic, natural and organic material that creates a sense of well-being, it has been sourced from responsibly-managed forests.” 
 
The series progressesed from the standing figure carrying the burden on its shoulders to resting against it – highlighting that whilst the burden may not be overtly visible it is often not far away. As passers-by approached the interactive giant cuboid timber figures, a proximity sensor was triggered, and they began to voice poignant and uplifting words. These conversations start to crack the ‘burden’ to release a glowing light.

“Many of us carry issues and burdens that hold us down and hold us back,” says Steuart Padwick. “Even when the burden is not overtly holding them down it is rarely far away. That is why one piece has the burden clearly on the shoulders, and with the other sitting piece, the burden is to one side – perhaps forgotten for a moment but always near.”