Dorking’s Artistic Planters
Dorking has always been an artistic town so when some of our old wooden planters needed replacing we wanted to do something creative with their replacements.
In summer 2025 Hello Dorking applied for funding from Mole Valley District Council’s Neighbourhood CIL fund to replace many of the wooden planters around the town with galvanised steel ones. We commissioned 5 local artists to design a wrap for the planters and gave them the prompt “What I love about Dorking”. The results are amazing, so varied and creative, but capturing the many facets of life in Dorking.
We then worked with local suppliers Wild by Design for the planting and Eyes Wide Design to bring the artist’s vision to life. Eyes Wide Design did a fantastic job translating the artist’s work from digital files, paper, canvas and original painting on wood to make them fit and shine on our new planters.
The Dorking Men’s Shed have also supported by creating some information stakes for the planters, and the South Street Memorial Garden Project have been able to utilise some of the compost and plants from the existing planters in their garden.
To round off the project we have also renovated and replanted the concrete planters in Allen Court and Chequers Yard ensuring a better welcome to the town when approaching from the south. Wild by Design will be continuing to maintain all the planters ongoing ensuring they thrive and local businesses will help with watering.
It has been a real community project which we hope the wider community will enjoy the benefits of for years to come. The planters will form part of a town wide artistic trail launching in Spring 2026.
Our Artists
Uncle Stubble (aka Tim Styling)
What I Love about Dorking? I first visited Dorking because of its rich music scene. I’ve played in bands all my life, and developed many strong relationships with local musicians and artists.
I asked Dorking, via many social media sites, what local bands have given you amazing nights, past and present, and please give the decade. I took the results, hunted down logos and have made “Dorking Mix Tape 1 &2”and transformed the planters into bright stereos, with the band logos stickers stuck over them.
The planters celebrate the local music scene from the 70’s funk a duck disco, to the present.
I hope you all love it.
Diana Croft
The inspiration for my designs for the planters came from the iconic Dorking cockerel and the rolling landscape of the Surrey Hills. The cockerel sculpture has been embraced by the town and has been decorated by the local guerrilla knitters to celebrate National and local events so seemed a fitting image for the town planters.
I used my linocuts along with collage to create the images.
Twinkleton Art
I have been creating starry night artwork of Dorking and The Surrey Hills for few years and was delighted to be invited to design two new planters for our town.
So when given the brief ‘what I love about Dorking’, I chose some favourite places including our high street to celebrate our many independent shops, pubs and cafés, often housed in historic beautiful buildings.
The artwork of our quirky little town was a joy to create and I can’t wait to see the planters blooming.
Tiffany Budd
Being a part of this project with other brilliant Dorking artists is incredibly exciting. I love creating artwork inspired by Dorking.
I have previously had my banner design hung in Dorking town last year, and with that, one of my planter designs was inspired by it, including all my favourite places in Dorking.
The second one is more of a block design with each segment showing a different building or place in the area. I am known for my bright colours in art, so had to make these bright and eye catching for the general public.
Lucy Cariell
The cockerel in these designs may be familiar to you – not only from our infamous roundabout, but also from the ‘DorKing Coronation’ which marked the start of my work with the fabulous Hello Dorking. This artwork was created by reverse painting on glass and gilding using traditional techniques, giving the 24ct gold cockerel a mirror finish. It was my first official display, so receiving a Highly Commended award from the judges was a proud moment.
The original ‘DorKing Coronation’ artwork now hangs in my home and serves as a reminder of the joy and opportunities that come when I follow my creative nudges. That message carried me into this project. My research introduced me to other creative minds inspired by our town, and ideas began to weave themselves into what you see today. These designs celebrate the vibrant, symbolic meaning flowing through written and visual forms of creating in response to inspiration. I hope my work encourages anyone exploring their creative side to let go of outcomes and give themselves permission to play.
While I love working with paint, gold, and glass, I felt called to expand my digital skills for this planter project. I’m very grateful and proud to have taken the opportunity to evolve my skills and for the learnings I’ve taken from this. The result is now proudly sitting among incredible businesses and reflects our vibrant community. It is an honour seeing the planters alongside those created by brilliant local artists and to have collaborated with Hello Dorking, Eyes Wide Digital, and Wild By Design. Thank you all for making this project a reality, it has been a pleasure.
Instagram @thelucyrosestudio or email lucycarliell@googlemail.com
New planting in Allen Court.
Before: The planter looking very sorry for itself in Chequer’s Yard.
After: New planting from Wild By Design, and planters painted.
Our partners:
