ASSEMBLY ROW HOLIDAY

The Assembly Row Shopping Center in Somerville engaged our team to create a fresh, fun, and festive installation for the Holiday Seasons.

The installation was conceived as a celebration of the season and of the rich industrial history of Assembly Row. The design process began with an investigation of the iconic elements of the winter months that make our collective memories of this season feel so magical – sledding in the snow, stacks of cut logs for the fire, falling snowflakes, and most of all the soft glow of sparkling lights.

These inspiring elements were then re-imagined with a contemporary aesthetic, leading to the creation of an installation that featured giant snowflakes fabricated out of reclaimed local barn wood and vintage industrial steel cogs brought in from the midwest with internally lit programmable LED lights. A ground installation of snowflake and timber framed log cabin shapes invited visitors of all ages to come and play.

Three giant snowflakes, each 10’-12’ in diameter, were hung from the iconic steel arches that tower at the end of the Row as an homage to the rich industrial history of the complex.  

The ground level installation was designed to be an ideal backdrop for holiday photos and social media posts. It featured stacks of round birch and pine logs, smaller reclaimed wood and steel cog snowflakes, and a large snowflake at the center made from vintage Radio Flyer sleds.  

In the plaza, there was a small village of cabins and clusters of stumps that acted as casual seating. The cabins were depicted in simple stick-frames of the iconic cabin shape with internally glowing bands of LED light. Surrounded by giant logs topped with puffy white cushions that suggested a snow-top mushroom cluster. 

The installation was unveiled at the “Light the Row” ceremony by Somerville Mayor Joe Curtatone.