A vibrant outdoor pavilion featuring collaborative artwork has been installed in London to bring attention to the city's often-overlooked night shift workers. The project, called "Unheard Voices in the City," was created through a partnership between UK design studios POOR Collective and Wiggle Wonderland.

The colorful open-air pavilion was positioned in St Bartholomew's Hospital courtyard as part of this summer's London Festival of Architecture. The installation was commissioned by the London Museum specifically to celebrate and recognize the City of London's night-shift workforce.

According to research conducted by the Living Wage Foundation, approximately 26 percent of London's workforce operates during nighttime or evening hours, representing a significant portion of the city's labor force that often remains invisible to daytime residents.

"The main concept for the installation was to spotlight the unheard voices of the City of London's night market traders, hospital staff and black cab drivers," explained Akmaral Khassen, architectural designer at POOR Collective. "The artwork was co-designed with Smithfield's night-time communities, celebrating their stories."

The project's approach was deeply collaborative, with POOR Collective conducting extensive surveys and drawing sessions at various nighttime venues throughout the city. These sessions took place at St Bartholomew's Hospital, the renowned Fabric nightclub, and Ferrari's 24-hour cafe, ensuring representation from diverse sectors of the night economy.

"Night workers play a vital role in the City of London's functioning, but there is limited data on their needs and experiences," Khassen noted. "Through thoughtful dialogue and research, we uncovered the aspirations, stories, and experiences of these communities, while also discovering more about the hidden nightlife that shapes the city."

Each bold artwork displayed in the pavilion was created in direct collaboration with night workers themselves, ensuring authentic representation of their experiences and perspectives. The collaborative process allowed workers to share their stories and contribute to the visual narrative that would represent their community.

The artworks were suspended from a coral-colored timber structure that was reclaimed from a previous project. Wiggle Wonderland designed this weatherproof framework to function as an open-air art gallery, demonstrating sustainable design practices through material reuse.

Now that the festival has concluded and the pavilion has been dismantled, the weatherproof MDF artworks will find new life elsewhere through the London Museum's ongoing programs, ensuring the project's impact extends beyond its original installation period.

The overarching goal of the installation was to celebrate the contributions of night-shift workers while simultaneously highlighting the challenges they face in their daily work lives. "It's easy to overlook the workers and communities who keep things running while most of us sleep," Khassen emphasized. "By sharing their stories in a bold way, we wanted to highlight both the challenges they face and the value they bring."

POOR Collective, whose name serves as an acronym for "power out of restriction," operates as a design studio with a social mission to engage young people in transforming London's public spaces. The studio has gained significant recognition for its community-focused approach to design and architecture.

Recently, POOR Collective received the prestigious Emerging Design Medal at London Design Festival, acknowledging its substantial impact on the city's design scene. This recognition reflects the studio's commitment to creating meaningful, socially conscious design projects that address real community needs.

The photography for the project was captured by Andy Stagg, documenting both the installation process and the final pavilion as it stood in the historic hospital courtyard.

The London Festival of Architecture 2025 took place throughout the month of June, from June 1 to June 30, 2025, featuring various installations and events at locations across London. The festival serves as an annual showcase for innovative architectural projects and design interventions that engage with the city's diverse communities and spaces.

This project represents a growing trend in contemporary architecture and design toward community engagement and social impact, where professional designers work directly with affected communities to create authentic representations of their experiences and needs. The success of "Unheard Voices in the City" demonstrates how temporary installations can effectively raise awareness about important social issues while creating beautiful, engaging public art.