New artwork unveiled in Rishworth Road underpass to brighten up popular route into Dewsbury town centre

The project, which is part of the Dewsbury Creative Town Arts Programme, has been funded by Kirklees Council as one of the elements of its Blueprint plans to revitalise the town centre.

The artwork, called “Tessella”, has been designed by Dewsbury-based visual artist Saba Rifat, who took inspiration from the historical and urban brickwork, paving, stained glass windows and stone carvings in the town centre.

Saba also worked with design students from Kirklees College and held engagement events for the general public to help develop her ideas.

She said: “This commission has been a huge undertaking, but I’m delighted to see it finally complete and there for everyone to enjoy.

"The design process for this project has been extremely time-consuming as well as intuitive and fun, so it’s really rewarding to see the finished piece.”

Coun Eric Firth, cabinet member for transport and Dewsbury ward councillor, said: “There is a large amount of footfall through this underpass, making it a very popular route for access into the town, so it’s important that it is kept in good condition and is welcoming for the locals and visitors alike.

"The artwork has been cleverly designed to fit in with the architecture of Dewsbury, as well as being fun and thought-provoking.

"It’s fantastic to see the underpass is now more appealing. I am delighted with the outcome for Dewsbury.”

Kate Watson, programme manager for Dewsbury Creative Town, said: “It’s amazing to finally see Saba’s work in situ and hope it provides users of the underpass with a bright and colourful welcome to the town.

"Saba has worked extremely hard to create an environment which is unique to Dewsbury and celebrates the very best of our town.”

Tessella, which is a feminine Latin word to describe square tiles of stone and glass which are used in mosaics, was employed as the process for generating design ideas to create the surface pattern for the underpass walls.

The final piece includes more than 3,000 bespoke tiles which took just a week to install. The new tiles have been placed on top of the previous artwork which was created by Kirklees College students several years ago.