Painting the past: recreating 1930s design at Soho Theatre Walthamstow

Meet Walthamstow artist and specialist decorator Saskia Huning, one of the many people working on the interior restoration of Soho Theatre Walthamstow (formerly the EMD and Granada cinemas).

Saskia’s work focuses on recreating a section of the 1930s painted dado design, a geometric stencilled tiled pattern that lines the walls of the auditorium. The building interior was designed by Theodore Komisarjevsky and was inspired by the Alhambra. To recreate the stencils, an area of the original painted dado was uncovered and traced off and colours were mixed to match this, considering the aged patinated appearance of the original. Stencils were then cut to allow the design to be recreated. The video shows the detail and craftsmanship that’s going into the restoration of the iconic Walthamstow building.

Saskia Huning is a local artist and specialist decorator working on restoring and recreating historic decorative schemes and murals. Working in both traditional and modern materials a variety of gilding and painting techniques are used in projects in museums, churches and private houses around the country.  

Read about the Soho Theatre Walthamstow project and find out more about Saskia’s work on the Huning Decorations website.