Shoreditch, buzzing with creatives and City workers alike, rarely pauses for breath. But head to the east London enclave this summer and you'll find a moment of respite amid the chaos: a new pavilion in Principal Place, imagined by Athens and New York-based design duo Objects of Common Interest. Commissioned by Brookfield Properties and co-curated with Alter-Projects, the installation runs from June through September as part of the London Festival of Architecture 2026, joining a lineage of ambitious temporary structures at the site by the likes of Simone Brewster, Foster + Partners and John Booth.
Objects of Common Interest co-founder Eleni Petaloti describes the installation, entitled ‘Colour Field’, as 'part landscape, part modern ruin, part meeting place'. The work is a series of geometric blocks arranged across the plaza, hewn from various types of stone. They sit at all angles, some low to the ground and others rising up to two metres. It is not a single object but a composition – one that shifts with the light and angle from which you approach. Pampas grass softens the edges and reinforces the sense that the structure has simply always been here, open to the elements.
What gives ‘Colour Field’ its particular resonance is the provenance of its materials. The installation is constructed entirely from unpolished marble, quartzite and travertine sourced from Solid Nature – surplus stock, offcuts and remnants of unrealised projects from Brazil and Iran to Italy, China, Spain and Turkey. Rather than concealing these origins, Objects of Common Interest celebrates them, reworking discarded pieces into a collage-like composition that feels simultaneously ancient and freshly assembled.
‘As designers, architects and artists, we fundamentally disagree with the idea of a “rejected” natural material. We don't accept the notion that a piece of stone can somehow be considered unworthy,’ says Petaloti. ‘So we went through the Solid Nature archives and created this composition based on what we found.
‘Working with salvaged materials did not feel like a limitation,’ she adds. ‘Instead, it became a process of composition, similar to that of a painter working with a palette of colours. Each stone contributed different qualities, and the way they were arranged shaped the final experience.'
Objects of Common Interest co-founder Eleni Petaloti at 'Colour Field'
At a formal level, the blocky massing of the work functions as an extruded cityscape – a scaled-down skyline brought to human proportion. 'If you imagine viewing a city from a helicopter, you see these large buildings and volumes. Here, those forms have been scaled down into something that feels welcoming and accessible,' explains Petaloti.
That accessibility is literal as well as conceptual. The blocks double as seating – and workers from the surrounding offices, residents from nearby buildings and passers-by are taking full advantage, making the structure genuinely usable rather than merely decorative. Throughout the summer, meditation sessions and other programming will take place around the pavilion, deepening engagement with the space.
'Whether you are taking a break from work in the nearby offices or simply stepping away from daily life, you can come and sit within the artwork. By touching these materials, you are momentarily reconnected with nature, even in the heart of London,’ Petaloti continues. ‘The main protagonist of the plaza is not the artwork itself; it is the visitor. The viewer becomes the central figure within the work.’
It is a philosophy that both Petaloti and Brookfield Properties adhere to: treating public space not as a backdrop, but as a cultural resource: ‘We never want visitors to stand in awe of our work from a distance. We want them to feel welcome within it,' she says. 'We are not seeking admiration; we are seeking inclusion.’
In a neighbourhood defined by its contradictions, ‘Colour Field’ makes a virtue of exactly that – disparate parts, brought together, forming an unlikely whole.
'Colour Field' is on display at Principal Place, Shoreditch, London EC2A until September 2026. Entry is free.
Read our full guide to London Festival of Architecture 2026