THIS HOUSE WAS ONCE A HOME

Plaque, made from fibreglass. Circular with blue background and white raised lettering 'OUR HERITAGE' and 'THIS HOUSE WAS ONCE A HOME'.

Designed by artist Paul Noble, the plaque mimics English Heritage's famous blue plaques and is one of many sited on condemned homes on Dyers Hall Road, Leyton in 1993-93 during the M11 link road protest.

In the 1980s and early 90s, Leytonstone housed the largest population of artists in Europe. Plans to cut through the area with a motorway resulted in low-rent live/ work spaces via the artist-led organisation ACME. Residents included Noble, Cornelia Parker and Grayson Perry. Protestors defied eviction and declared the independence of the states of Leytonstonia and Wanstonia, citing that the road was destroying local communities.

Dyers Hall Road was at the front line of the M11 link road protest, with one side of the road scheduled for demolition whilst the other half was spared. Security guards and protestors occupied these derelict houses. Breeze-blocked up, with steel fences covered in anti-road grafitti erected in their front gardens, these houses became sites of placement for artists’ work created as a response to the area’s changing landscape, such as this plaque.

The M11 link road finally opened in 1999, but the increased costs and public awareness contributed to several road scemes being reviewed or cancelled. Some protestors went on to oppose other schemes in the country. By 2014 the A12, as the link road became known, was the ninth most congested road in the UK.

Noble was nominated for the Turner Prize in 2012.