NORTHERN ARCHITECTURE - the story so far...
Northern Architecture was created in 1995 as the Northern Architecture Centre Limited. The four original subscribers to the company were the Newcastle Architecture Workshop, the Northern Branch of the Royal Institute of British Architects, the Northern Architectural Association and the Centre for the Built Environment (the University of Newcastle upon Tyne and Northumbria University). These four separate bodies each had their own history – the Newcastle Architecture Workshop was created in 1977, the first body of its kind in the UK, dedicated to helping communities schools and colleges make positive changes to their own environment. The Northern Architectural Association was set up in 1851 by architects in the North East to promote the science and art of architecture. The four bodies came together to raise funds for and build a centre that could bring together all of their functions under one roof– promoting and assisting architects, promoting architecture to the public, engaging and assisting schools and communities, and engaging other professionals in raising architectural standards in the North East.
Despite hours of input from many people and the support of many public bodies, the scheme to build a physical centre was withdrawn in 1998. To sustain some of the momentum that had been built up, Northern Arts gave funding for the post of Programme Director, and Mark Daniels took up this post later that year. Operating as Northern Architecture the company was based in the premises leased by Newcastle Architecture Workshop from Newcastle City Council in the 13th century cloister of Blackfriars, in the centre of Newcastle upon Tyne.
Unfortunately in 1999 the Newcastle Architecture Workshop closed due to lack of funding. The Centre for the Built Environment also effectively no longer exists, although the two universities collaborate with the Northern Architectural Association and Northern Architecture on an annual programme of architecture and design lectures. In 2002 Northern Architecture received funding from the regional programme of CABE, the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment and together with continued funding from the Arts Council of England, North East, this has enabled the story to begin again.

PAST PROGRAMME
Architecture Week (12th - 19th November 1998 and continuing into January 1999, Region wide)
Northern Architecture supported projects included 'Art in the Public Domain' seminar at Live Theatre, Newcastle, 'Banana' education workshops in schools in Barnard Castle, 'Talk n'Tour' by Andy Gollifer of the National Glass Centre, Sunderland, 'Orbit' installation by Thomas Henderson at Blackfriars, Newcastle, 'Richard Wilson: Irons in the Fire' exhibition at Globe Gallery, North Shields, 'Architectural Images of the North 1700-1950' exhibition at the Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle,'Pod Three v0.2' installation by Andy Gracie and 'Be a Giant in Toon Town' exhibition both at the Hatton Gallery, Newcastle. Also on television three specially commissioned pieces about architecture and the built environment for BBC 'Look North' regional evening news programme.

What's New Pussycat (15th March -1st September 1999, Barnard Castle)
A exhibition of Design Council Award winning products from the 1950's and 60's not seen since they were first shown at the Bowes Museum. A gallery was brought back into use from being a storage space and Northern Architecture paid for a new lighting system, an important legacy for the Bowes Museum. The exhibition launched Design in Education week in the region.During the first three years of the programme, the Bowes Museum has provided Northern Architecture with access to both a remarkable collection but also remarkable people. Now retired, former Curator Elizabeth Conran was an important mentor.

Rolf Rosner Retrospective (22nd - 26th March 1999, Newcastle)
Northern Architecture curated exhibition of original architectural drawings and watercolours on paper by local architect Rolf Rosner at St. Andrews Church to mark Rolf becoming honorary president of the Northern Architectural Association.

Beyond Topping Out (11th May 1999, Ulverston)
Seminar showcasing an example of good practice in Arts Council Lottery funded capital building projects. Speakers focused on Welfare State International's new headquarters in Ulverston, Cumbria but also featured background presentations from Mark Daniels and Alicia Pivaro.

Alvar Aalto: House of Culture (17th May - 25th June 1999, Newcastle)
Supported exhibition at the University of Newcastle of black & white photographs by Helen Binet and models depicting architectural details and spatial planning of the House of Culture in Helsinki designed by Alvar Aalto in 1958.

Weeds, Aliens & Other Stories (1st July - 12th September 1999, Barnard Castle)
Exhibition of contemporary furniture design in English Oak for the garden by Michael Anastassiades, Fiona Raby and Anthony Dunne. Originally commissioned by the Prague office of the British Council and part of the acclaimed 'Stealing Beauty' at the ICA in London. Installed amongst the ceramic galleries of the Bowes Museum.

NAA Lecture Series (28th October 1999 - 16th March 2000, Newcastle)
The NAA lecture series is organised by representatives of the Northern Architectural Association, University of Newcastle, University of Northumbria and Northern Architecture. The following seven lectures took place in the Department of Fine Art Lecture Theatre, University of Newcastle. Each block of lectures had a specific theme. 1/ Double Measures: Ben Langlands & Nikki Bell, Joe Banks & Nick McCamley, Sarah Wigglesworth & Jeremy Till. 2/ Writing Blocks: Deyan Sudjic and Neil Leach. 3/ Building Blocks: Sarah Hare and Malcolm Fraser.

Architecture Week (5-14 November 1999 and continuing into January 2000, Region wide)
Launch of Architecture Week at our refurbished offices plus the following Northern Architecture supported events: 'Eco-homes' lecture by John Bodger, Stephen Crichton and Neil Winder at Tullie House, Carlisle, NAA 'Double Measures' lecture by Banks & McCamley at the University of Newcastle, 'Blackout' at Waygood Gallery, Newcastle, a multimedia installation and live performance by Joe Banks of Disinformation that dealt with the architecture of obsolete WWII early warning systems, 'Virtual Interiors' at VR Centre, Middlesbrough, a collaborative residency project between Philip Reilly, Ru Conroy and Mark Gavillet exploring domestic environments within virtual space, 'Divine Facades' at Queen's Hall, Hexham, an exhibition of new and archive architectural photographs of India, 'Public Art Laboratory' at Globe Gallery, North Shields, the results of four A4E funded residencies by Janet Emmanuel, Susan Bleakley, Kirsten Aubrey and Blaise Drummond. Each worked with an industrial partner to develop new ways of working with ultra-sonic welding material, concrete, glass and colliery waste in a public art context, ' Sugar Grids' at Blackfriars, Newcastle, a site-specific time based sculpture by Alexandra Ryley which deals with concepts of environment and awareness of the space around us through the fragile nature of the medium, icing sugar. A vast network of three dimensional grids were 'piped' into place over three months. The final work had a sense of urgency created by it's shear immobility and inevitable destruction, and 'The New Museum' at the Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, an exhibition of contemporary museum architecture from around the world coupled with specially commissioned outline design strategies for an extension to the Bowes Museum itself by Claudio Silvestrin, Gollifer Associates and Jane Darbyshire & David Kendal. A seminar was held to close the project and to get a sense from the public and professions alike on the best way forward.

The Sitooteries (May 1st to October 30th 2000, Belsay)
Twelve new installations and summerhouses by architects, artists and designers each interpreting the Scots word 'sitooterie', literally a place to sit-out in. Co-curated by Mark Daniels and Judith King and sited in the house and grounds of Belsay Hall & Castle, Northumberland. Participants comprised Michael Anastassiades, FAT, Foster & Partners, Thomas Heatherwick, Inflate, Tania Kovats, Ashley McCormick, Mosedale Gillat with Octo Design, Julian Opie, Claudio Silvestrin, Simon Watkinson and Welfare State International. The Sitooteries was a joint initiative between English Heritage, Northern Architecture and Northern Arts with funding from the European Regional Development Fund, The Arts Council of England and the Henry Moore Foundation and sponsorship from Barker & Stonehouse.

Architecture Week (9-18 June 2000, Region wide)
RIBA hosted a launch event at Blackfriars on the 9th June with live jazz, Maddi Nicholson's pink inflatable 'village hall' and an architectural cake competition . The Sitooteries (see above) was the major exhibition project with two outdoor performances of A Midsummer Night's Dream plus the unveiling of the Foster & Partners structure. Talk n'Tours by architects of new buildings including Rheged in Penrith and Bede's World in Jarrow. A 'Heath Robinson' summer school at Lanternhouse in Ulverston. Talk & Tour by Owen Luder of the car park in Gateshead from 'Get Carter'. Opening of Segedunum Roman Fort, Bath House & Museum in Wallsend. Exhibition of sustainable housing projects by students from the University of Newcastle at Blackfriars. Seminar at Kielder Water in Northumberland on the Softroom 'Belvedere' and James Turrell 'Skyspace'.

Year of the Artist (August 2nd - November 14th 2000, Newcastle)
Three month residency by Tod Hanson in a temporary studio space above the offices of Northern Architecture at Blackfriars. During this time Tod took a square mile of Newcastle and Gateshead centre on the Tyne Bridge and transformed it into a 16x8ft supergraphic painting that put a unique futuristic spin on the architecture and built environment.
 

 

(the new) generic (22nd September 2000 - 7th January 2001, Barnard Castle)
A world premier exhibition of multiples & products by international architects, artists and designers on the theme of '(the new) generic'. Works were displayed in juxtaposition with the permanent collection of the Bowes Museum. All works were for sale through e-commerce and mail order. Exhibition was co-curated by Elizabeth Conran and exhibition partners Evans & Wong, Paris.

NAA Lecture Series (26th September 2000 - 20th March 2001, Newcastle)
A season of free lunchtime lectures at the University of Newcastle. Speakers comprised Andrew Ballantyne, Ewen & Fiona MacLachlan, David Page & Miles Glendinning, Deborah Saunt, Margaret Leong, Martin Ungless, Eric Carter & Graeme Dodd, Iain Borden and Jane Rendell.

Home (November - December 2000, South Shields)
Supported touring exhibition looking back at fourteen houses which played a vital role in the history of twentieth century architecture. The houses include: Charles Rennie Mackintosh's Hill House; Le Corbusier's Villa Savoie, Philip Johnson's Glass House and Frank Gehry's Schnabel House.

A History of the Future (8th January 2001 - 24th February 2001, Tyneside)
A Northern Architecture project for Tyneside Cinema delivered in collaboration with The Arts Council of England, BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, Globe Gallery, Nexus, Northern Architectural Association, Northern Arts, The Photographers' Gallery, Waygood Gallery and Wimpey Homes. Inspired by 20th Century cinematic visions of the built environment of Earth in the 21st Century and beyond, 'A History of the Future' comprised twenty separate initiatives centred on a screening programme of eleven science fiction films which ranged from Metropolis to The Matrix. Supporting projects included the display of Tod Hanson's epic painting produced during a Year of the Artist residency with Northern Architecture (see above). An education project inspired by the work was delivered by BALTIC with eleven secondary schools in Gateshead. BALTIC commissioned artist Vuk Cosic to produce a hacked ASCII version of the official Warner Brother's web site for The Matrix (1999) at www.thisistherealmatrix.com Calum Stirling and Rob Kennedy composed and performed a new soundtrack to Metropolis (1926). Architect Cedric Price spoke about his work at the University of Newcastle. Partick Flynn, Alexsandra Mir, Matthew Smith and Alison Unsworth exhibited their work at Waygood. Alexander Gorlizki exhibited at Globe. The work of photographer Julius Shulman documenting progressive West Coast homes from 1947 to 1963 was exhibited by Wimpey Homes at their East Quayside development. Other films included Things to Come (1936), Forbidden Planet (1956), Alphaville (1965), THX1138 (1970), Sleeper (1973), Blade Runner (1982), Gattaca (1997), The Fifth Element (1997) and Dark City (1998).

Year of the Artist (18th - 21st May 01, Teesside)
'Cultural Tourism' residency by fashion designers Adam Thorpe and Jo Hunter of Vexed Generation, part funded by Northern Architecture. Project was managed by Graham Ramsay on behalf of Cleveland Arts. The residency dealt with issues relating to the environment, new fabric technologies and surveillance.

Riverscape (1st - 29th June 2001, Newcastle)
Interim exhibition and public consultation at Newcastle Arts Centre featuring Tod Hanson's epic painting produced during a Year of the Artist with Northern Architecture (see above). The painting was displayed in support of a BALTIC education project with eleven secondary schools from Gateshead who each took a section of the painting and fabricated a three dimensional response. These models were then fitted together to make a unique representation of the Newcastle and Gateshead quaysides. The Riverscape document outlining ideas for the future of the River Tyne was published on the 8th February 2002. Northern Architecture was represented on both the steering and curatorial groups throughout the study.

Architecture Week (22nd June - 1st July 2001, Region wide)
Annual programming focus with a regional lunch at the National Glass Centre funded by the RIBA Northern Region. Projects included Riverscape (see above), The Apartment and Making Buildings (see below). Four fully booked 'Talk n'Tour' construction site visits were organised around BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art (x2), Sunderland Winter Gardens and the Alnwick Garden project in Northumberland.

The Apartment (23rd June - September 5th 2001, Sunderland)
Product design and furniture by architects and designers showing how each works in glass and a variety of other materials. Exhibits were displayed informally as a loft style apartment. Visitors were able to handle the majority of the work. This included pieces by Alvar Aalto, Michael Anastassiades, Ron Arad, Cini Boeri, Antonio Cittero, NIck Crosbie, Norman Foster, Sophie Jacqmin, Marc Newson, Elsa Peretti, Philippe Starck and Vicky Weiler. This was the first exhibition at the National Glass Centre to feature the work of architects and designers, and as such has impacted on future programming, broadening their exhibition policy.

Making Buildings (29th June - 5th August 2001, Middlesbrough)
Supported Crafts Council touring exhibition to be located at Centre North East in Middlesbrough with sponsorship by Wimpey Homes. Contributors: Architectural Association, Air Architecture, The Architectural Glass Centre, Simon Conder Associates, Cowley Structural Timberwork, Edward Cullinan, Tony Eastman, Material, Tomo Mirai, Jim Partridge, John Pawson, Sarah Wigglesworth Architects, Sixteen* (Makers), Ushida Findlay, Walter Segal Self Build Trust and Woolf Architects.

NAA Lecture Series (25th September 2001 - 25th March 2002, Newcastle)
A second season of twelve lunchtime lectures this time split between the campuses of the University of Newcastle and the University of Northumbria. Speakers included Jonathan Woolf, John Gold, Paul Monaghan, Irena Bauman, Thomas Albrecht, Steve Graham, Nick Crosbie, Tony Chapman and Martin Pawley. Lectures by Spela VIdecnik, Richard Murphy and Richard Weston have had to be postponed. From April 2002 the NAA Lecture Series will go monthly with a pilot series of three evening lectures at Tullie House in Carlisle.

Commodity, Firmness & Delight (27th October 2001 - August 2002, UK Touring)
A touring exhibition inspired by the Japanese love hotel organised around notions of reception, room and reward. A joint initiative between Northern Architecture and Globe Gallery, curated by Mark Daniels and Rashida Davison with funding from the Arts Council of England, Japan 2001 and Northern Arts. Love hotels satisfy a need. They provide privacy and escapism for Japanese couples far away from tiny homes, extended families and prying eyes. They are easy to find, often clustered near mainline railway stations and expressway interchanges. Their design is overblown, their names absurd, but they are an intrinsic and suprising part of Japanese society. During the day, rooms are available for two hour 'rests' or, from 10pm for overnight 'stays'. All processes, from the selection of a room to check-out is automated or discrete. This unique context provided the curatorial framework for this exhibition. Following research in Japan, existing work was sourced and new pieces commissioned from Shumon Basar, FOBA, Hideshi Ide, Yoshimasa Ishibashi, Konami, Pleats Please, Adele Prince, Shin & Co, Bridget Smith, Calum Stirling, Atsushi Tameda, Takara Toys, Kosuke Tsumura and Kyoichi Tsuzuki. On Valentine's Day 200 all the major contributors to the exhibition were invited from the UK and Japan to speak about their work at a seminar hosted by CUBE in Manchester, where the exhibition was on display. The seminar was made possible through the support of Japan 2001 official sponsor Japan Airlines and founding benefactor Hilton. The exhibition will also tour to the RIBA Architecture Gallery in London and The Lighthouse in Glasgow in 2002.

Architecture and Design Lecture mini-series May – August 2003
Living In Between Spaces, Dr Nathaniel Coleman, University of Newcastle upon Tyne; Site, Settings and the Struggle for Authenticity – the building of the National Maritime Museum, Falmouth – MJ Long, Long & Kentish Architects; BALTIC: 1 Year On – a discussion between Dominic Williams of Ellis Williams Architects and Sune Nordgren, Director of Baltic.

Architecture Week 2003
See full programme elsewhere on this site.