Juan Lopez Stage 5 Critical Thinking Essay: Creative Preservation

CREATIVE PRESERVATION

Tools for Thinking About Architecture ARC8051 / SEMESTER 1 ESSAY

ABSTRACT

T

his essay will serve as an introduction to the unique opportunity that COVID-19 has created to help resolve two issues currently being faced by the UK. The rst being the precarious situation in which the Arts & Culture Sector nds itself as a result of the lack of government support and growing apathy of the British people towards it. Second of these is the decline of the high street, accelerated by the pandemic and the continued rise of online retail. While I recognise that these topics are too large to comprehensively dissect and explore in this essay; I believe that an innovative approach involving the urban realm can create a mutually bene cial scenario in which both problems can be alleviated - thus, meriting further investigation leading to a proposed solution. The essay will look into three factors which I believe are crucial in beginning to resolve this dilemma. First, the development of an alternative performance architecture. Secondly, a reconsideration of the public realm as an appropriate stage for these architectures. Finally, how legislative and governing bodies can, through public policy, effect positive change in this sector within the current socio-economic and cultural climate. The research consisted of reading to nd examples that t the aforementioned factors which embody aspects that could help to improve the situation. Through subsequent analysis of these, it proved that each aspect has the potential to create the type of positive impact already occurring either within the UK or elsewhere in the world.

However, it is through a combination of these three factors that a more profound and effective solution can be presented by working to reinstate the civic role of the arts. As a result, the paper will provide a model that explains the various possible combinations of the investigated areas and their respective outcomes.

These can be adopted depending on a place’s limiting factors in terms of time, available capital and desired level of intervention.

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INTRODUCTION

Fig. 1 / Collage depicting the signi cance of the arts on the identity and culture of the city of Newcastle.

One of the most deeply impacted sectors by the COVID-19 Pandemic has been Arts & Culture1; and with it, the notion of entertainment, escapism and sense of community with which it is so strongly associated. At one point, 25% of all businesses were not operating; while 41% had their turnover halved. Additionally, as many as 80% of people working in the arts and the wider creative industries are self-employed or freelance-workers and have been unable to secure government support through the self-employment scheme or other grants2. Workers have been very vocal about the impact on their mental health as a result of being ‘forgotten’ and ‘ignored’ after feeling that they have been under-supported by the UK government3.

The sector is at the brink of collapse as a result of the pandemic. Public sentiment towards the government was not helped as many deemed that the eventual announcement of the £1.57billion Culture Recovery Fund came much too late to mitigate the already massive losses as a result of venue closures, postponed 1

ONS (Aug 2020), Online Report

2

Hewison (2020), Online Article

3

Brown and Campbell (2020), Online Article

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shows and rising unemployment in the sector4. This comes as a surprise considering that the sector is worth nearly £112billion annually to the Treasury, which represents a growth ve times faster than the national average5; meaning it is more nancially signi cant than Agriculture6 or Sport7 - both of which have been less hard hit8 and the latter similarly supported by the government9. This perceived indifference towards the arts is further highlighted by the fact that there has been a 37% fall in entries for arts subjects at GCSE over the past decade10.

34m

Theatre tickets sold in 2018

£1.3bn

Theatre box of ce income in 2018

80%

Estimated average reduction in seats due to social distancing

50%

Minimum proportion of tickets a show needs to sell to break even

70%

Proportion of theatres warning they will run out of cash by the end of 2020

70%

Proportion of 290,000 theatre jobs at risk

Table 1 / ‘Theatres under Threat’ - statistics illustrating the impact of COVID-19 on the stage industry.

£5.8bn

Music industry contributed to the UK economy

£2.9bn

Generated in export revenue

197,168

Full-time jobs sustained

12.6m

Music tourists attending live music events

£4.7bn

Music tourists spendature

45,633

Jobs sustained by music tourism

11%

Percentage increase in contribution to UK economy by music industry between 2018 and 2019

Table 2 / ‘Music by Numbers 2020’ - statistics illustrating the importance of the music industry to the UK economy.

4

Hewison (2020), Online Article

5

UK Gov (Feb 2020), Online Press Release

6

Brown (2019), Online Article

7

Sport England (2020), Online Report

8

ONS (Aug 2020), Online Report

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BBC Sport (2020), Online Article

10

Hewison (2020), Online Article

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This all comes at a time when, due to the recurring lockdowns, many people nd themselves increasingly consuming the output of the Arts & Culture Sector in the form of pre-recorded performances; such as, music, television, lm and stage11. This was for a sense of company and emotional support by disrupting the monotony and struggle of lockdown to safeguard their mental health12. This highlights not just how integral arts and culture can be to our everyday life but also how this industry has not been built in order to allow for performances to occur with social distancing measures in place.

For the past decade, the UK high street has been in decline13. As shoppers move towards the convenience of online retail14; many of the large anchor stores that once drew people into the centre of town have had to close branches as they have become nancially non-viable. This has had a knock-on effect for the smaller independent stores that relied on the footfall brought by the chains. The recent COVID-19 Pandemic has only accelerated and exacerbated this process with many businesses being forced to shut; unable to reopen in the foreseeable future15, leaving many vacant units behind with it, turning the once vibrant and bustling city centre into a desolate and unwelcoming place16.

Fig. 2 / Photograph showing one of the busiest junctions in London, Oxford Circus, empty as a result of lockdown during the COVID-19 Pandemic

11

Savage (2020), Online Article

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Swain (2020), Online Article

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Osborne (2020), Online Article

14

ONS (Dec 2020), Online Report

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Kollewe (2020), Online Article

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Shaw (2020), Online Article

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Taking all of these gures and trends into consideration; it is clear to me that there exists a de cit in three key areas which are inhibiting the prosperity of the Arts & Culture Sector. The essay will therefore consider aspects of architecture, public realm and public policy. Through analysis of examples from within the UK and internationally that t into these categories; I will explore how readily these methods could be adopted in order to restore the civic role of the arts, thereby ensuring ‘Creative Preservation’.

The desire to reinforce the relevance of the arts stems from the notion that performance is inextricably linked to promoting and diffusing culture which helps to establish the identity of a place17 (Fig.1); this therefore is an important issue to resolve. As such, this essay is not concerned with preserving performance buildings; rather the act of performance through the urban realm and its positive by-product of reinvigorating the British high street.

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“Cities exist for citizens, and if they do not work for citizens, they die.”

Cedric Price

DeMarrais and Robb (2013) p.6 and p.20

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(PERFORMANCE) ARCHITECTURE My approach comprises of presenting a series of chronological processes that can work towards resolving the issue. Working towards ‘Creative Preservation’, the rst logical step is to safeguard the very act of performance. When, due to the pandemic, traditional performance is not an option; we must adapt our model for performance to nd an alternative way that we can begin to bring back the arts into cities and quotidian life.

For context, if we are to observe a place within the UK that demonstrates the current model for where and how performance takes place; then we can begin to understand why it is failing at a nationwide scale.

Newcastle is the most-populous city in North East England (and eighth largest overall)18, forms the core of the Tyneside conurbation and is one of the UK Core Cities19. These attributes place it as an appropriately sized city to serve as a case study.

Clockwise from Top Left: Fig. Fig. Fig. Fig.

3 4 5 6

/ / / /

Theatre Royal, Newcastle. Opened in 1837. Capacity - 1,249. Hosts stage performances.

St James’ Park Stadium. Opened in 1892, renovated in 1998. Capacity - 52,305. Hosts music concerts.

Utilita Arena Newcastle. Opened in 1995. Capacity - 11,000. Hosts various events including music, dance and comedy.

Sage Gateshead. Opened in 2004. Capacity - 2,240. Hosts arts and culture events.

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ONS (Jun 2020), Online Dataset

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Core Cities UK (2020), Online Article

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Traditional performance venues are almost always large enclosed spaces. In Newcastle, venues such as Theatre Royal, St James’ Park, Utilita Arena and Sage Gateshead; built over the course of three centuries and all architecturally distinct and used for different types of performances, they nevertheless conform to this traditional model. While there will always be a demand for large indoor venues, COVID-19 presently renders them inoperable; supported by the gures in Table 1.

Cedric Price said that “Cities exist for citizens, and if they do not work for citizens, they die”20. As such, architecture’s role in this is that it should respond accordingly to the shifting socio-economic and cultural demands of a time. It must also consider an inbuilt adaptability to mitigate the impact felt by unforeseen circumstances such as presented by the pandemic. Keeping a consciousness towards the future, it can ensure that whatever is posed has the longevity to still function thus, preventing cities from dying. We can adopt this ideology derived from Price’s commentary on architecture to look at alternative typologies that allow for a new version of performance which can innovate or ip the current model on its head.

The demand for the return of performance during COVID-19 was trialed in Gosforth Park, Newcastle to great success21. However, this was in the outskirts of the city (Fig. 7) and still followed one of the key characteristics of the adopted model for performance - a capacity of 2,50022. In order to make this possible under current health regulations the arena had to be outdoor. This means that pleasant weather conditions will bear signi cant importance to the enjoyment of events. This illustrates its inability to respond to external conditions which limits its year-round success. I believe that we need to nd a way that performance can occur within the city centre to drive the importance of performance through social consciousness irrespective of factors such as weather and the need of a large audience.

Fig. 7 / Map showing the location of Newcastle City Centre ‘A’ in relation to Gosforth Park ‘B’. Distance between both locations is 5.5miles; approximately 2hrs walking.

In the rst instance, at a time when everyone has had to become accustomed to being deprived of physical interaction, the new model for performance must work to reverse this. Urban pavilions are structures that promote cultural and educational exchanges within the community. They do so by relating themselves to the people at a more human scale, contrasting with the large scale buildings that we see in city centres.

This has the added bene t of connecting people with their surroundings and providing rare moments of peace and enjoyment23.

Urban pavilions all work to be diffusers of arts and culture by altering the interaction between an individual and their immediate surroundings24. A small footprint ensures an inventive use of space through inbuilt adaptability enabling them to host a range of programmes. For example, Pabellón CCP’s space for

20

Price (2001), Interview

21

Holland (2020), Online Article

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Holland (2020), Online Article

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Pintos (Oct 2020), Online Article

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Pintos (Oct 2020), Online Article

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musical performance25; The Yellow Pavilion’s provision for sports games, photoshoot background, exhibition space and venue for debates and discussion26; the digital mapping, puppetry arts, classes and reading sessions taking place at Catalyst Cube27 and the conferences and public discussions to artistic performances and lm screenings of Street Cinema28. This encourages people to interact with one another by discovering and taking part in these events; forcing people to alter their usual journeys through a space with which they are familiar. These spaces work by setting themselves apart of their urban situation through an alternative approach to design. The inventive use of materials, as in the case of fabric in Street Cinema; uncommon materials found in city centres such as exposed timber and plywood in Pabellón CCP and Catalyst Cube respectively; and the bold monochromatic appearance of The Yellow Pavilion all draw attention to inspire a sense of curiosity and discovery from passers-by. With neither form nor colour being directly referenced elsewhere in their respective urban situation, they attract people towards and into them where a wealth of new urban interactions between architecture and community can occur.

Fig. 8 / Pabellón CCP, República Portátil (2016).

Concepción, Chile.

25

República Portátil (2016), Project Pro le

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Architecture for Humans (2019), Project Pro le

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Incursiones (2019), Project Pro le

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Omri Revesz (2018), Project Pro le

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Above - Fig. 9 / The Yellow Pavilion, Architecture for Humans (2019).

Pristina, Kosovo.

Below - Fig. 10 / Catalyst Cube, Incursiones (2019).

Caracas, Venezuela.

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Fig. 11 / Street Cinema, Omri Revesz (2018).

Venice, Italy.

Examples of venues exist that narrow their focus towards establishing a foundation of a new approach to performance. Projects such as the ‘The Tiny Travelling Theatre’ and ‘Folk in a Box’ both present an innovative take on how to reinterpret performance within the urban realm on a smaller scale. These are purpose-built installations which cater speci cally to an audience no larger than six29 (the same social gathering rule established by the UK government introduced a decade later30); while the latter presents itself as the ‘UK’s smallest performance venue’ with an audience:performer ratio of 1:131.

The role of the alternative performance architecture is to re ne a typology which encompasses the attributes of the presented examples. Framed within the notion of smaller scale performance, akin to socialsupport bubble requirements, it demonstrates their purpose to change public perception that performance requires a large audience. Moreover, they must consider transportability; amorphous and adaptable forms with bold colours to draw people in and be able to appropriate parts of city centres with ease.

Fundamentally, by taking inspiration from urban pavilions that encourage community engagement and marry it with the design ingenuity of small spaces, they bring unique moments of experience and escapism.

The consequence is therefore the return of performance into the city centre.

29

Aberrant Architecture (2012), Project Pro le

30

UK Gov (Sept 2020), Online Article

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DK-CM (2010), Project Pro le

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Fig. 12 / The Tiny Travelling Theatre, Aberrant Architecture (2012).

London, UK.

Fig. 13 / Folk in a Box, DK-CM (2010).

London, UK.

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(THE ROLE OF) PUBLIC REALM Now that the parameters for performance in light of COVID-19 have been de ned; it is important to offer a viable platform to better diffuse arts and culture through the city centre and into the community. This section will underline the suitability and signi cance of public realm as the ‘stage’ for these urban pavilions.

Finally, I will speculate how and why the role of the public realm should shift to combat the demise of the sector within the UK. First, it is important to de ne what is meant by ‘public realm’. There is an intrinsic difference between public realm and public space. Public space does not play such a signi cant factor in this process as it encompasses buildings to which most people have access to in some regard32; these include libraries, shopping centres and parts of government buildings33. Public realm is a sub-category of public space de ned as ‘a series of connected spaces’34. This can be understood as the spaces in between buildings such as roads, pavements, public squares, public gardens and parks. The public realm therefore comprises areas that are readily accessible, regardless of a person’s socio-economic background. They provide the perfect opportunity for impromptu interaction between people and the alternative performance architecture previously outlined.

The city centre forms an integral part of daily life within the community in a cultural and social sense. Here, the economic, social, political and cultural elements of a city coexist and interrelate35. As a result, ‘the quality and success of our city centres’ provide an insight into the ‘prosperity and character of a place’36.

Successful urban centres present an opportunity for interaction between people of different demographics and backgrounds37. Through a social mix dynamic, it can help to strengthen a sense of community38 and the celebration of arts and culture can reinforce the identity of a place39 when opportunities for positive social congregation arise40. As in the case of Azatlyk Square (Fig. 14), where the public realm acts as three distinct squares, each with their own distinct but complementary characters and offers in order to have a space that is inclusive of different groups of people41.

Next Page: Above - Fig. 14 / Azatlyk Square, DROM (2019).

Naberezhnye Chelny, Russia.

Below - Fig. 15 / 8-23-VI , Medium (2019).

Tblisi, Georgia.

32

Miller (2007), p.xvi

33

The Bartlett School of Planning (2004), p.10

34

Greater London Authority (2016), p.290

35

Beall and Adam (2017), p.22

36

Burn and Redmond (2020), p.1

37

Roberts (2007), p.187

38

Worpole and Knox (2007), p.5

39

Beall and Adam (2017), p.22

40

Pintos (Aug 2020), Online Article

41

DROM (2019), Project Pro le

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I believe that people in city centres are able to activate spaces, transforming them into a destination in the urban realm that draws the community to it, creating positive engagement between the city’s inhabitants and their surroundings. As stated in the introduction, British high streets are suffering from a considerable reduction in footfall42. This can only lead to the conclusion that city centres are not presently successful.

Given the continued rise in the popularity of online retail, this is unlikely to change without positive intervention. It therefore follows that the urban core, representative of a city43, is not destined for prosperity in the near future. This highlights the necessity to change the focus within the British high street.

By introducing a shift from the high street’s established focus away from retail towards community engagement, enjoyment and education; a reanimation of the city centre can begin to occur44. I propose that this reanimation should focus on the Arts & Culture Sector which has been so severely impacted by the pandemic and underfunded by the UK government. This will establish a mutually bene cial relationship between this sector and the urban realm.

Urban pavilions such as 8-23-VI (Fig. 15), reactivate the public realm and combat the separation of social classes and involvement. By questioning the norms of ownership and public-private dynamics, they reinstate the democratic and collective use of the public realm45. Moreover, by extrapolating the principle of mixeduse of the urban pavilions; the proposed smaller-scale venues can be reimagined as both performative and educational. Their ability to accommodate both stage and classroom makes them a multi-purpose social space where the community can experience and become part of the performance; thereby aiding the venue to be woven rmly and deeply within the urban and cultural fabric of the city46.

Public realm should actively adopt the principles of the Fun Palace rst introduced by Cedric Price and Joan Littlewood in 1961 (Fig. 16). The original manifesto aimed to break down preconceived social and intellectual barriers within communities by creating a venue that would be ‘accessible to those who wouldn’t normally go to arts venues or great centres of learning’47. Their reincarnation since 2014 as community-led ‘pop-up’ palaces48, temporarily appropriated parts of the public realm, illustrating the close relationship between architecture and public realm to enrich the community through education and entertainment. The various locations aimed to ‘shine a light on and value everyone’s existing creative skills and activities; reclaim local and regional public spaces for all; connect people to collaborate for change in their communities; make the most of local, regional and national strengths and assets, including individuals’ abilities; shift the perception of culture to one that embraces and values everyone’s cultural participation and production, and for resources to be apportioned accordingly’49.

By doing so, it would have the added bene t of breaking down the separation between performer and audience creating a disconnect with the arts. This is not aided by the disinterest shown towards it due to the social construct that the arts are reserved for the upper classes and of certain ethnic backgrounds50. This, I believe, is another a contributing factor to the ongoing decline of the Arts & Culture Sector.

42

Briggs (2021), Online Article

43

Shaw (2020), Online Article

44

Parker (2020), Interview

45

Medium (2020), Project Pro le

46

DeMarrais and Robb (2013) p.4, p.6 and p.10

47

1000 Tiny Fun Palaces (2013), Online Pro le

48

Brown (2014), Online Article

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1000 Tiny Fun Palaces (2013), Online Pro le

50

Brook, O’Brien and Taylor (2018) p.9, p.12, p.17 and p.32

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To summarise, there is a duality in the role of the public realm towards ‘Creative Preservation’. First, it is to serve as a viable platform to better diffuse arts and culture through the city centre and into the community.

Secondly, it will facilitate the breakdown of social and involvement barriers within the arts by utilising the spaces for community activities combining entertainment (through performance) and education (through creative sector classes). This will encourage people back into the city by giving them the chance to experience something that they are unable to have anywhere else or have been missing. In the same way that retail locations have used coffee shops inside to give people a reason to go there; these pavilions dispersed around the public realm become little landmarks drawing people to them and becoming the reason to visit city centres once more.

Fig. 16 / Fun Palace, Cedric Price (ca. 1961-1964).

London, UK (unbuilt).

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(ADAPTING) PUBLIC POLICY In order to give the platform for alternative performance architecture within the public realm longstanding success; a strong public policy framework should be established so that it can be built upon and thrive.

This, however, means that the current approach towards public policy needs to change in the UK from one of indifference to one of active support. Between 2007 and 2018 there has been a 43% fall in local authority arts funding51. Meanwhile, on a national level, the current public policy attitude towards the Arts & Culture Sector is typi ed by the CyberFirst campaign under the tagline of ‘Rethink. Reskill. Reboot’. It was widely interpreted, with its clear suggestion that a ballet dancer would be best served by retraining in a different career, as a dismissal of the creative industry during the pandemic52. Ironically, the creation of the advert itself required a multi-disciplinary approach by a variety of creative professionals in the Arts & Culture Sector (Fig. 17).

Fig. 17 / CyberFirst Campaign Ad and the creative industries that contributed towards its creation.

Another issue regarding the Arts & Culture Sector is employment opportunities for graduates of creative arts courses post academia. Despite a nearly 20% increase in creative industry jobs between 2011 and 51

Hewison (2020), Online Article

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Swain (2020), Online Article

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201653 it still only represents 6% of the total jobs in the country54. Most of the jobs are concentrated in London and South East55. Economic recessions tend to disproportionately negatively affect the creative industries56. It is reasonable to assume therefore that due to the pandemic, these numbers are most likely to decrease; placing the sector at risk of collapse. Given the value of the sector to the treasury, there is a clear need to adopt policy that can create new job opportunities within it. If we are proposing to revitalise urban centres across the UK through the provision and diffusion of arts and culture through performance then, by de-centralising the concentration of the creative industry job opportunities, public policy should adapt its approach. It must move towards funding smaller, independent start-up enterprises to ensure an even spread of workers into the sector on a national scale. This would also have the added bene t of continuing to break down socio-economic and intellectual barriers between the arts and the wider community, which as discussed in the previous section, is an integral part of the process towards Creative Preservation.

The importance of active support and funding by government towards grass-roots enterprises is best exempli ed by Venture for America. This is a non-pro t organisation, founded in 2011 by entrepreneur, politician and philanthropist Andrew Yang57. Yang sought to create economic opportunities by training recent graduates and young professionals to work for start-ups in emerging cities throughout the United States58 as a way to catalyse the regeneration of their failing urban centres. While the organisation has received criticism for creating just 4,000 of the 100,000 by 2025 jobs thus far59; I believe that part of this slow progress is attributed to the lack of government funding60 despite vocal support61. Furthermore, the government could fund initiatives like Funding the Cooperative City62 that research and present investment opportunities, ensuring that a wide array of independent community-led projects in terms of scale and disciplines within the Arts & Culture Sector are being supported and developed.

An adaptation on public policy within the UK should be a revision of the High Streets Fund. Launched in December 2018, a maximum of £830million will be invested by the government towards the delivery of regeneration schemes drawn up by 72 selected areas in England. It would fund ‘new local projects such as improvements to transport infrastructure, new homes and the transformation of underused spaces’63. The aim was to help these areas ‘recover from the pandemic and help transform underused town centres into vibrant places to live, work and shop’64. So far, only £255million across 15 places has been con rmed.

This means that there are 57 areas provisionally receiving a total of approximately £575million, where the local authorities will work in conjunction with the government to nalise their proposals65. I believe that the 53

DCMS (2016), p.7

54

DCMS (2016), p.8

55

DCMS (2016), p.9

56

Moldoveanu and Ioan-Franc (211), p.18

57

Bruder (2011), Online Article

58

Venture for America (2021), Online Pro le

59

Schleifer (2019), Online Article

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Schleifer (2019), Online Article

61

Carson (2012), Online Article

62

Patti & Polyak (2017), p.7-12

63

UK Gov (Dec 2020), Online Press Release

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UK Gov (Dec 2020), Online Press Release

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UK Gov (Dec 2020), Online Press Release

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nal proposals should include a reallocation of funds speci cally designated for cultural and arts projects.

This funding could be used to make the temporary pop-ups of fun palaces a xture within the urban realm; committing to the permanence of the new approach to the arts within public policy.

It is therefore the government’s responsibility to fund these independent and community led start ups.

Beyond this, it should introduce economic incentives for the construction industry to build permanent spaces for the alternative performances architecture as already outlined. This will lay the foundations to build public con dence to not only engage with but become workers within creative or performing elds. By establishing a framework geared to the improvement of the Arts & Culture Sector, it can enable a change that adapts the UK’s current approach to public policy of the sector in a bene cial manner.

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CONCLUSION As stated, COVID-19 had a profoundly negative impact on the Arts & Culture Sector in the UK by impeding traditional performance almost entirely. Furthermore, the pandemic has highlighted the pre-existing issues in so many established and accepted urban models relating to the failing British high street. It threw into question the viability and longevity of the currently adopted approach which over-relies on retail and of ce spaces to ensure the success of the heart of a city. I speculated that by preserving the act of performance through the urban realm, the civic role of the arts could be restored. This would therefore compensate for the decline in relevance of the Arts & Culture Sector in a socio-economic and cultural landscape; ensuring ‘Creative Preservation’. Furthermore, an additional by-product of this process would be the much needed reinvigoration of the British high street.

This essay explored and investigated three key areas which I believe could directly respond to the de cit created by the growing trend of cultural indifference and lack of economic support of this sector. The analysis demonstrated that architecture, public realm and public policy can respectively: reintroduce the opportunity for performance; provide community engagement & education and establish a framework which enables positive change and development. These can allow for performances (socially distanced when required) as well as education and training for the community into the sector by the very industry workers who have been affected by the pandemic. With many people unemployed or under furlough, it presents a unique opportunity to either develop a new skill or pursue a lifetime dream of performing.

Thereby offering an alternative to the government’s current message of ‘Rethink. Reskill. Reboot’ to promote the Arts & Culture Sector.

Fig. 18 / Model for ‘Creative Preservation’.

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Taking these ndings into consideration, I have devised a model that explains the various possible combinations of the presented factors and their respective outcomes; illustrated by Fig. 18. They can be adopted depending on a place’s limiting factors in terms of time, available capital and desired level of intervention.

As the diagram above shows, the three aspects can individually contribute towards improving the success of the Arts & Creative Sector in the current socio-economic and cultural climate of the UK. By recalibrating the approach to how the arts should be performed and experienced; a new architectural typology can be rmly integrated into the urban realm, providing the opportunity for performance once more. The impact and immediate aftermath of the pandemic presented an opportune situation to reassess the functionality and purpose of the public realm in a city centre by engaging with creative and alternative methods to propose an innovative approach towards tackling its decline. The updated role, both in an architectural and social sense, presents endless locations where the arts can interact with the community. The provision for cross-pollination between entertainment and education through urban pavilions as incubators for the arts enables them to become sites of activity66. This can give people a reason to return to the city centre thereby driving the re-animation the British high street. Finally, the government should adopt public policy that actively promotes and funds independent, community-led grass roots creative programmes which can ensure their success and facilitate a continuous uptake of workers into the Arts & Culture Sector.

When each of these factors are combined with a second, however, they have a considerably more signi cant and pronounced bene t tailored to a place’s individual circumstance. It then follows that to have the optimal condition for improvement of the situation, all three elements of the model should be implemented simultaneously.

In conclusion, the analysis and resulting proposed model reveal that a holistic and inclusive approach framed within architecture, public realm and public policy can restore the civic role of the arts. Enabling the return of enjoying a performance within the urban realm following a global pandemic will showcase the Arts & Culture Sector to a wider audience than before. Here, the community will be encouraged to nd new interests; learn new skills and pursue passions within the arts. By improving the accessibility of performance and with government funding securing its career viability, it will propel a resurgence in popularity and signi cance of the creative industries across all demographics. The result of which can be described as ‘Creative Preservation’.

Word Count - 4,193

(not inc. ‘Abstract’, Tables, Annotations & Footnotes, ‘Bibliography’ and ‘Figures & Tables’)

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DeMarrais and Robb (2013) p.7

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BIBLIOGRAPHY Author/s

Year of Publication

Title

Place of Publication / Website

Publisher / Date Last Accessed

1000 Tiny Fun Palaces

2013

Where does the idea come from?

funpalaces.co.uk/aboutfun-palaces/where-doesthe-idea-come-from/

27/01/2021

Aberrant Architecture

2012

The Tiny Travelling Theatre

aberrantarchitecture.co m/projects/the-tinytravelling-theatre

26/01/2021

Architecture for Humans

2019

The Yellow Pavilion

www.architectureforhu mans.com/the-yellowpavilion/

26/01/2021

The Bartlett School of Planning

2004

Living Places: Caring for Quality

London, UK

RIBA Enterprises Ltd

BBC Sport

2020

Coronavirus-hit sports to bene t from £300m emergency funding rescue package

www.bbc.co.uk/sport/ 54998979

23/01/2021

2017

Cities, Prosperity and In uence.

The role of city diplomacy in shaping soft power in the 21st century

Edinburgh, UK

British Council

2021

Footfall across UK retail destinations declined by -10.9% last week from the week before, Springboard Reports

www.retailtimes.co.uk/ footfall-across-uk-retaildestinations-declinedby-10-9-last-week-fromthe-week-beforespringboard-reports/

27/01/2021

2018

Panic! It’s an Arts Emergency.

Panic! Social Class, Taste and Inequalities in the Creative Industries

London, UK

Create London

2019

Arts contribute more to UK economy than agriculture - report

www.theguardian.com/ culture/2019/apr/17/ arts-contribute-more-touk-economy-thanagriculture-report

23/01/2021

2014

Fun palaces: Joan Littlewood’s dream to be realised 100 years after birth

www.theguardian.com/ stage/2014/jul/18/funpalaces-joan-littlewooddream-realised-100years-birth

27/01/2021

2020

Seismic, torturous and gruelling’: forgotten UK arts workers fall through support cracks

www.theguardian.com/ stage/2020/jun/18/ seismic-torturous-andgruelling-forgotten-ukarts-workers-fallthrough-support-cracks

22/01/2021

Jo Beall and David Adam

Fiona Briggs, for Retail Times

Dr Orian Brook, Dr David O’Brien and Dr Mark Taylor

Mark Brown, for The Guardian

Mark Brown, for The Guardian

Mark Brown and Lucy Campbell, for The Guardian

fi

fl

22

JUAN LOPEZ

CREATIVE PRESERVATION

Jessica Bruder, for The New York Times

2011

Starting a Teach for America for Entrepreneurs

web.archive.org/web/ 20180104132334/ https:// boss.blogs.nytimes.com /2011/10/12/startinga-teach-for-america-forentrepreneurs/

Daniel Burn and Jane Redmond

2020

Material Change

Newcastle, UK

Newcastle University

Jon Carson

2012

Celebrating a Year of Champions of Change President Obama Meets with 12 Champions Who Are Making a Difference in Their Communities

obamawhitehouse.archi ves.gov/blog/ 2012/04/27/ celebrating-yearchampions-changepresident-obamameets-12-championswho-are-making-

28/01/2021

Core Cities UK

2020

Newcastle

www.corecities.com/ cities/cities/newcastle

25/01/2021

2013

Art makes society: an introductory visual essay (World Art, 3:1)

www.tandfonline.com/ doi/pdf/ 10.1080/21500894.20 13.782334? needAccess=true

Taylor & Francis (23/01/2021)

Department for Culture, Media and Sport (28/01/2021)

Elizabeth DeMarrais and John Robb

Deparment for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS)

2016

Creative Industries: Focus on Employment

assets.publishing.service .gov.uk/government/ uploads/system/ uploads/ attachment_data/ le/ 534305/ Focus_on_Employment_ revised_040716.pdf

DK-CM

2010

Folk in a Box

dk-cm.com/ dkcmprojects/folk-in-abox/

26/01/2021

DROM

2019

Azatlyk Square

d-r-o-m.com/azatlyk/

27/01/2021

Robert Hewison, for ArtReview

2020

How the UK Government Failed to Save the Arts

artreview.com/how-theuk-government-failed-tosave-the-arts/

22/01/2021

Daniel Holland, for Chronicle Live

2020

UK's rst socially distanced arena at Gosforth Park has ‘set the standards’ for festivals worldwide

www.chroniclelive.co.uk /news/north-east-news/ social-distance-concertarenafestival-18772396

25/01/2021

Incursiones

2019

Catalyst Cube

incursiones-ve.com/ CCS-CUBE

26/01/2021

2020

Pandemic will ‘vastly accelerate’ decline of UK high street, MPs told

www.theguardian.com/ business/2020/apr/ 30/pandemic-will-vastlyaccelerate-decline-of-ukhigh-street-mps-told

23/01/2021

Julia Kollewe, for The Guardian

23

JUAN LOPEZ fi

fi

28/01/2021

CREATIVE PRESERVATION

Greater London Authority

2016

The London Plan The Spacial Development Strategy for London consolidated with alterations since 2011

Medium

2020

8-23-VI

medium.works/8-23-vi

27/01/2021

2007

Designs on the Public: The Private Lives of New York’s Public Spaces

Minneapolis, MN (USA)

University of Minnesota Press

2011

The Impact of the Economic Crisis on Culture (Review of General Management, 14:2)

California, USA (HQ)

Sage Publishing

2020

Coronavirus and the impact on output in the UK economy: August 2020

www.ons.gov.uk/ economy/ grossdomesticproductgd p/articles

22/01/2021

2020

The impact of the coronavirus so far: the industries that struggled or recovered

www.ons.gov.uk/ economy/ economicoutputandpro ductivity/output/articles

23/01/2021

Of ce for National Statistics (ONS)

2020

Estimates of the population for the UK, England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland

www.ons.gov.uk/ peoplepopulationandco mmunity/ populationandmigration /populationestimates/ datasets

25/01/2021

Omri Revesz

2018

Street Cinema

www.omrirevesz.com/ work/street-cinema

26/01/2021

Hilary Osborne, for The Guardian

2020

Extent of Britain’s high street decline laid bare in of cial data

www.theguardian.com/ business/2020/aug/ 10/extent-britain-highstreet-decline-laid-bareof cial-ons-data

23/01/2021

Cathy Parker

2020

How to save the UK’s crisis-hit High Streets

www.bbc.co.uk/news/ business-51094109

27/01/2021

2017

Funding the Cooperative City Community Finance and the Economy of Civic Spaces

Vienna, Austria

Cooperative City Books

Paula Pintos, for ArchDaily

2020

Pavilions in Cities: 10 Structures that Foster Human Interactions

www.archdaily.com/ 950112/pavilions-incities-10-structures-thatfoster-humaninteractions

25/01/2021

Cedric Price

2001

CEDRIC PRICE: Limited Lifespan of Cities

032c.com/limited-lifespan-of-cities

25/01/2021

Kristine F. Miller

Maria Moldoveanu and Valeriu Ioan-Franc

Of ce for National Statistics (ONS)

Of ce for National Statistics (ONS)

Daniela Patti and Levente Polyak

fi

fi

fi

fi

fi

24

London, UK

Greater London Authority

JUAN LOPEZ

CREATIVE PRESERVATION

2020

Revitalised Public Spaces: Fostering Human Connections in Cities

www.archdaily.com/ 945220/revitalizedpublic-spaces-fosteringhuman-connections-incities

27/01/2021

2016

Pabellón CCP (Concepción Crea Produce)

www.republicaportatil.c l/index.php? album=PABELLONCCP-032016

26/01/2021

Marion Roberts

2007

Sharing Space: Urban Design and Social Mixing in Mixed Income New Communities (Planning Theory & Practice, 8:2)

www.tandfonline.com/ doi/full/ 10.1080/14649350701 324417

Taylor & Francis (27/01/2021)

Mark Savage, for BBC News

2020

Pop stars live-stream concerts from home to combat isolation

www.bbc.co.uk/news/ entertainmentarts-51924765

23/01/2021

Theodore Schleifer, for Vox

2019

Andrew Yang is promising to revitalise America. His nonpro t tried, too, but couldn’t.

www.vox.com/recode/ 2019/6/13/18637853/ andrew-yang-venturefor-america-jobs-record

28/01/2021

Adam Shaw, for BBC News

2020

How to save the UK’s crisis-hit High Streets

www.bbc.co.uk/news/ business-51094109

23/01/2021

Sport England

2020

Economic development

www.sportengland.org/ why-were-here/ economic-development

23/01/2021

2020

The government’s attitude to Fatima and the arts will put them on the wrong side of history - they just don’t know it yet

www.independent.co.uk /voices/cyber rstadvert-rethink-reskillreboot-fatimas-next-jobcoronavirus-artsb992467.html

27/01/2021

2020

UK’s Creative Industries contributes almost £13 million to the UK economy every hour

www.gov.uk/ government/news/ukscreative-industriescontributes-almost-13million-to-the-ukeconomy-every-hour

23/01/2021

2020

Rule of six comes into effect to tackle coronavirus

www.gov.uk/ government/news/ruleof-six-comes-into-effectto-tackle-coronavirus

26/01/2021

UK Government (UK Gov)

2020

£830million funding boost for high streets

www.gov.uk/ government/news/830million-funding-boost-forhigh-streets

28/01/2021

Venture for America

2021

Our Mission & Approach

ventureforamerica.org/ about-us/our-missionapproach/

28/01/2021

Ken Worpole and Katherine Knox

2007

The social value of public spaces

York, UK

Joseph Rowntree Foundation

Paula Pintos, for ArchDaily

República Portátil

Marianka Swain, for The Independent

UK Government (UK Gov)

UK Government (UK Gov)

JUAN LOPEZ fi

fi

25

CREATIVE PRESERVATION

FIGURES & TABLES Name

Author/s

Year Site Was Published / Last Updated

Title of Internet Article / Site

URL

Date Last Accessed

Fig. 1

Own Work

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

2020

Retail footfall to suffer ‘for some time to come’, BRC warns

www.retailweek.com/stores/ retail-footfall-tosuffer-for-some-timeto-come-brc-warns/ 7035073.article? authent=1

23/01/2021

en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Theatre_Royal,_Ne wcastle

25/01/2021

Fig. 2

26

Luke Tugby

Fig. 3

Christopher Down

2020

Theatre Royal, Newcastle

Fig. 4

Mark Walker

2021

St James’ Park

stadiumdb.com/ stadiums/eng/ st_james_park

25/01/2021

2021

Utilita Arena Newcastle

en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Utilita_Arena_New castle

25/01/2021

research.ncl.ac.uk/ northerninnovation /exhibits/ thesagegateshead/

25/01/2021

Fig. 5

Anthony Foster

Fig. 6

Newcastle University

2021

The Sage Gateshead

Fig. 7

Own Work

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

Fig. 8

República Portátil

2016

Pabellón CCP (Concepción Crea Produce)

www.republicaport atil.cl/index.php? album=PABELLONCCP-032016

26/01/2021

Fig. 9

Architecture for Humans

2019

The Yellow Pavilion

www.architecturefo rhumans.com/theyellow-pavilion/

26/01/2021

www.archdaily.com /934957/ installation-catalystcube-will-sandydesign-studio-plusincursiones

26/01/2021

Fig. 10

Edgar Martínez

2019

Installation: Catalyst Cube / Will Sandy Design Studio + Incursiones

Fig. 11

Omri Revesz

2018

Street Cinema

www.omrirevesz.co m/work/streetcinema

26/01/2021

Fig. 12

Aberrant Architecture

2012

The Tiny Travelling Theatre

aberrantarchitectur e.com/projects/thetiny-travellingtheatre

26/01/2021

JUAN LOPEZ

CREATIVE PRESERVATION

Fig. 13

DK-CM

2010, 2012

Folk in a Box

dk-cm.com/ dkcmprojects/folkin-a-box/ + www.dezeen.com/ 2012/02/17/folkin-a-box-by-cristinamonteiro/

Fig. 14

DROM

2019

Azatlyk Square

d-r-o-m.com/ azatlyk/

27/01/2021

Fig. 15

Medium

2019

8-23-VI

medium.works/ 8-23-vi

27/01/2021

Fig. 16

Cedric Price & Canadian Centre for Architecture, Montréal (CCA)

2021

Fun Palace: interior perspective

www.cca.qc.ca/ en/search/details/ collection/object/ 378817

27/01/2021

2020

“Rethink. Reskill.

Reboot” - The government advert causing a stir on social media

mancunion.com/ 2020/10/16/ rethink-reskillreboot-thegovernment-advertcausing-a-stir-onsocial-media/

27/01/2021

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

2020

Seismic, torturous and gruelling’: forgotten UK arts workers fall through support cracks

www.theguardian.c om/stage/2020/ jun/18/seismictorturous-andgruelling-forgottenuk-arts-workers-fallthrough-supportcracks

22/01/2021

2020

Music By Numbers 2020

www.ukmusic.org/ research-reports/ music-bynumbers-2020/

23/01/2021

Fig. 17

Intellectual Content: Sean Coleman Visual Content: Own Work

Fig. 18

Table 1

Table 2

27

Own Work

Mark Brown and Lucy Campbell

UK Music

26/01/2021

JUAN LOPEZ