VIRTUAL Barcelona
Abstract
Divided from (or connected to) the larger city of Newcastle by the once highly industrialised River Tyne, the town of Gateshead in the north east of England is an unlikely candidate to be the birthplace of cultural regeneration in the UK, but a case can be made. Experiencing the economic and social impacts of post-industrial decline, in the late 1980s the town embarked on what is now a typical path of cultural regeneration, hosting the National Garden Festival in 1990 (a Conservative Government initiative to transform the economies and identities of declining places), transforming the former industrial BALTIC flour mill into a contemporary art gallery (2002), and constructing the landmark Sage Gateshead (2004) and ingenuously engineered Millennium Bridge (2001). Gateshead is probably best known for Antony Gormley’s emblematic Angel of the North (1998), itself embodying a phoenix-like rise from a former coal site, and yet what is less known is the pioneering and forward-thinking scheme of public art that gave the Council of this small town the confidence to embark on what was to be an era-defining scheme. The site of the Garden Festival and much public art has since been neglected but is now itself subject to regeneration – one which attempts to pioneer an approach that counteracts the negative repercussions of its cultural regeneration origins. This paper uses this site to consider public art as heritage and uses public art processes to consider the learning that could inform a different approach to cultural and creative regeneration.
Vee Pollock is Professor of Art & Place and Dean of Culture & Creative Arts at Newcastle University, UK. Her research critically considers the relationship between art and place, particularly urban environments undergoing significant change. She has written and spoken widely on public art practice and policy, and has recently worked with interdisciplinary teams examining public art in heritage environments. As Dean, she has responsibility for the University’s cultural portfolio and strategic partnerships. She is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and an RSA Fellow
Rebecca Farley is a Senior Research Associate in the School of Arts and Cultures at Newcastle University. Her research and writing examines the junctures between heritage and contemporary visual arts practice with a particular focus on commissioning and public art production. Prior to joining Newcastle, Rebecca worked as a public art consultant and Commissions Officer at Arts Council England. Rebecca is currently Co-Investigator on the AHRC funded project ‘On-Site/Off-Site: Thomas Bewick and contemporary art at National Trust Cherryburn’ and is Lead Investigator on a new AHRC international project ‘Networking transnational approaches to contemporary art in heritage practice’.
1:00 pm - 2:30 pm
Wednesday 17th July, 2024