This workshops are FREE to all participants and they are funded by Arts Council England.
Fancy getting involved in something a bit different?
This summer, Commando Jugendstil will be creating a one-of-a-kind solar mural at New Directions College, and we’re looking for volunteers to help paint it. You don’t need any artistic experience. If you enjoy getting creative and want to be part of a community project, we’d love to have you on board.
Painting sessions will take place at both New Directions College and Reading Bike Hub, and you can give as much or as little time as you can. It’s a great chance to meet new people, learn something new and help create a piece of artwork that the whole community can enjoy.
This project is all about bringing people together, celebrating creativity and creating something that will be a lasting part of Reading. If you’d like to get involved, we’d love to welcome you. Come along, pick up a paintbrush and help us bring this amazing mural to life!
Workshops dates, times and locations
Workshops will start on Thursday 16th of July, until Saturday 29th of August 2026.
This workshops are FREE to all participants and they are funded by Arts Council England. No registration required.
New Directions College – Tuesday to Friday, from 9am to 4pm
Address: South Reading Centre, 330 Northumberland Avenue, Whitley, Reading, RG2 8DH (Opposite South Reading Leisure Centre).
Parking: Parking available on site
Bus: No. 5 to Stockton Road
Reading Bike Hub – Saturdays, from 10am to 6pm
Address: 14-16A King Street, Reading, RG1 2HE
Bus: Most Reading buses stop on King Street
A Solar Mural by Commando Jugendstil and the people of Reading, UK
The Solar Mural is a project that combines community public artwork with cutting edge photovoltaic technology to create a new cultural landmark for the people of Reading.
The design is based on the concept that we, as humans, have been gathering around a metaphorical fire for millions of years to tell other humans stories of how to survive and thrive as a community.
New constellations
The Food Forest – Monday
It stands for the Commons, for working together in harmony with nature and creating shared resources for the community.
The Maypole – Tuesday
It stands for communal celebrations, for communities coming together and taking time to mark significant events and anniversaries. It stands for breaking away from the obsession with productivity and taking time to play, and laugh and enjoy life.
The Traveller – Wednesday
It stands for hospitality and solidarity, for taking the stranger in and treating all humans as fellows, but also for the joy of exploring a world remade.
The Horn Of Plenty – Thursday
It stands for sharing the abundance that has been created by working together.
The Library – Friday
Whether it lends books, or tools or toys, it stands for sharing knowledge and the ways of putting this knowledge into practice so that they are accessible to all. It stands against all hoarding and pay walling.
The Tree of Life – Saturday
It symbolises the new relationship between humans and the rest of nature in the new world, showing that we’re inextricably linked together, like trees in a forest.
The Joined Hands – Sunday
After the alienation of the neoliberal capitalist society, the Joined Hands proclaim the central role of solidarity, cooperation and empathy in creating a way of life that is made for human needs and human flourishing. We join hands, and help each other. Nothing human is alien to us. We flourish together.
Solar Panels
We will be using a unique kind of solar panel: ColorBlast Design panels by Kameleon Solar, a pioneering technology being developed in Roosendaal, The Netherlands.
The Solar Mural will not just be an artwork to be viewed, but it will also be interactive, giving the chance to people to engage with the installation and feel part of it, creating a dialogue with it, exactly as the characters represented in the design.
Thanks to PIR sensors, people will be able to interact with the installation, activating LEDs positioned in alignment with the stars on the upper part of the artwork and on the roots and on the mycelium in the lower part. Together with the lights, a soundtrack will also play and each day of the week will feature a different pairing of music and constellation, making the experience of playing with the installation always different and interesting.
Music
Producer, Sound Designer and Musician DNoise will provide the soundtrack for each one of the constellations, effectively allowing the installation to look and sound different every day of the week. The artist is developing tracks that are deeply connected with the star charts, using organic and natural sounds, recording and modifying sounds of nature like the ones of animals or the rustling of leaves and combining them with electronic sounds.
