This installation was made as part of National Festival of Making in 2023 through their headline commissioning programme, Art in Manufacturing, in a unique collaboration with the Cardboard Box Company. 

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In 1950 Illuminos’s Grandfather, Bob Peddie, opened a chocolate shop at 191 Blackburn Road, Accrington.  With secret recipes from his friend the Swiss Chocolatiers Marius Matti and Henry Clottu, the shop brought moments of delight and joy to Accrington through the many cardboard boxes of confectionary wonders to be discovered in the  shop window. 

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Now 75 years later, in a magical installation Peddie’s Chocolate Shop has returned once again. Step inside the shop as boxes come alive with the creation of confectionery and wondrous tales.  Like something from a fairy story, watch out for chocolate elves who, like the shoemaker story are hard at work in the shop.  Chocolate pours from one box to another, nuts roll in icing, strawberries are topped and cast into pools of syrup. Flights of fancy erupt on all sides, as magical elements and creatures grow, fly, spin and soar. 

With recreations of the original chocolate box designs, and original recipes displayed, visitors enjoyed this feast for the senses in Blackburn, Blackpool and Lancaster.  More infomation about the project can be found here.