Tom Pearman was commissioned by Guildford Borough Council, working with landscape architects Davies White Ltd, to create a permanent artwork for Foxenden Quarry Play Area in Guildford.
The resulting work takes the form of a large glacial boulder, carved with a simple graphic image of a ladder and downward-pointing arrow. The artwork references the history beneath the site and, in particular, the means of descending underground to access the former Foxenden Quarry.
Foxenden Quarry Deep Shelter
During the Second World War, the underground quarry was adapted as the Foxenden Quarry Deep Shelter, providing protection for local residents during air raids.
Rather than illustrating the shelter directly, Tom focused on the physical act of going underground. The ladder becomes a simple visual reference to descent, access and the concealed spaces beneath the landscape.
The downward arrow reinforces this idea, turning the boulder into a subtle marker of the history that exists below the present-day play area.
Material and fabrication
The artwork was produced using a 5-axis CNC machining process, allowing the ladder and arrow designs to be accurately carved into the irregular surface of the natural stone.
The machined areas were subsequently filled with epoxy resin, creating clearly defined graphic lines and contrasting areas within the surface of the boulder.
The combination of natural stone and precisely machined imagery creates a deliberate contrast between the geological character of the boulder and the functional visual language of ladders, signs and directional symbols.
Hidden history
The artwork connects the contemporary play landscape with a history that is largely invisible from the surface.
A familiar object — the ladder — becomes a means of suggesting the quarry, tunnels and shelter beneath the ground without attempting to reconstruct them literally.
The work continues Tom’s interest in architectural elements such as doors, openings, stairs and routes, and in how these familiar forms can suggest access to spaces that cannot immediately be seen.
Community engagement
The commission was developed alongside a creative workshop with Year 5 pupils from Sandfield Primary School in Guildford.
The session explored doors, openings and unexpected spaces through drawing and collage, providing an opportunity for pupils to engage with some of the ideas surrounding hidden places and access that informed the wider project.
ENGAGEMENT PROGRAMME →
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