What Was the Marble Arch Mound

The view is mostly trees with a glimpse of Battersea Power Station

The Marble Arch Mound was a temporary structure which closed on 9th January 2022 after opening on 26th July 2021. It was a viewing platform 25 metres in the sky made possible by an artificial hill covered in green sedum turf and a few trees. With everything supported by a vast amount of scaffolding. Climbing the mound initially had a fee which started at £4.50 but this was later removed due to its controversy and being named “London's Worst Tourist Attraction”.

The Mound is made completely of scaffolding

Controversy and Costs

The mound was constructed here to draw more tourists to the western end of Oxford Street. And because of the large amount of publicity it garnered this goal might have been inadvertently achieved. The Marble Arch Mound cost £6 million to build, almost double the £3.3 million it was forecasted to cost, which caused the Deputy Leader of Westminster Council (the council where the mound is located) to resign.

The View

The other view from the mound is just the tops of some buildings

Well the lack of a view. The mound is quite tall but it barely tops the surrounding buildings/ trees so the views from the top are certainly underwhelming. The main highlights being the top of Battersea Power Station (the end of the Northern Line Extension) and the top of the London Eye. The only other things really visible are the trees of Hyde Park and the tops of nearby buildings.

Lightfield is 12 red boxes which reflect light into smaller repeating squares
Lightfield

The Art

The art installation wasn't open when the tickets cost money (adding to it being London's worst tourist attraction) but is arguably the best part of the "experience". Opened 7 weeks late on 10th September 2021 located underneath the scaffolding which created the mound, this art installation boggles the mind. It was formed of three sections with each one a collection of geometric shapes with mirrors or screens inside reflecting light in fascinating ways. Created by "W1 Curates" with the artist Anthony James commenting that "Lightfield consists of 12 cubes that allude to the mycorrhizal nature of birch tree forests". Personally I believe that this is typical artists speech with the allusion being thought of after the construction of the actual piece of art.

The other art is a tricontahedron with many reflections

The Actual Marble Arch

Originally the Marble Arch Mound was to contain the actual Marble Arch but this didn't happen because of the potential negative impact the construction would have had on the icon. Specifically the mound's impact on Marble Arch was unknown by English Heritage and Historic England so they requested an investigation on its impact. Because of the lack of time before its opening it was decided not to enclose the mound and construct it adjacent to the arch.

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