North + South
Northern Gallery of Contemporary Art
Three architects, two artists, and a collective that includes practitioners from both professions explore our relationship to England's distinctive built environment. All six ask how what we build embodies our most cherished values, determines who we are, and creates our sense of civic identity. For some, the task at hand is to imagine how we might reshape our urban environments to provide the greatest happiness for the greatest number; whilst for others, imagining how we might be living in the near future is the priority.
AOC were the youngest practice in the Architects' Journal's recent survey of young British architecture. Here they have created 'Generous Street', a prototype which explores the potential of redundant pieces of street furniture. Nicola Koller's satirical short film 'This Sceptred Isle' visualizes her doctoral research into the direction of new-build planning over the next century, and Matthew Butcher imagines England in 2050, when, as sea levels have risen, East Anglia and the Thames Estuary have become flood plains uninhabitable in traditional buildings.
Space Hijackers are a collective of artists, architects and activists who create unofficial interventions into public spaces, and their 'Guerilla Benching' projects have re-instigated public seating removed or not replaced, to improve civic space for the common good. Immo Klink has photographed the effects of increasing insecurity, from policing of public space at Mayday parades to the G8 summit for the last decade.
Nick Relph & Oliver Payne's video 'Driftwood' is an alternative vision of how we can make sense of the city, and indeed the nation, and Susan Diab's audio installation 'Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside!' reworks the song of the same name, taking it into unexpected territory.
Back to North + South
What: North + South
Where: Northern Gallery of Contemporary Art, City Library and Arts Centre, Fawcett St, Sunderland, SR1 1RE
When: Wed 11 Jul - Sat 22 Sep 2007, 9.30am - 5.30pm, Late opening Mon and Wed until 7.30pm, Sat 9.30am - 4pm
Associated Events: Preview Tue 10 Jul 2007 6 - 8pm
Further Information: NGCA Website
Contact: tel 0191 514 1235
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