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Festival promotes public space and urban design

The best of new and upcoming architecture in Newcastle and Gateshead will be celebrated in the first North East Festival of Architecture for nine days from Saturday 14 June.

Organised by Northern Architecture, with the help of partners and supporters, the Festival builds on a legacy inherited from eleven Architecture Weeks, which have allowed thousands of people every year to take part.

Andrew Guest, Northern Architecture director, said: “We chose to focus this first festival on the major hub of the North East - Newcastle and Gateshead. Both places are increasingly seen as one, but take dynamically different approaches to development. The North East Festival of Architecture aims to go behind the scenes of the development that is taking place, and create opportunities to understand the processes that are shaping the North East of the future.”

To support the initiative, a ‘Friend of the Festival’ programme is also underway. Many local organisations and businesses, including FaulknerBrowns Architects, Newcastle City Council, Gateshead Council, and the Royal Institute of British Architects, have already pledged to back the festival.

Neil Taylor, of festival sponsor FaulknerBrowns Architects, said: “As architects, we are concerned not only about the buildings that we design, but the landscapes in which they sit. The Festival is all about raising awareness of the quality of the environments in which we live, work and play, and FaulknerBrowns is delighted to be part of an initiative which encourages people of all ages to contribute to this debate.”

To find out more about the North East Festival of Architecture or to register your interest as a Friend of the Festival, contact Northern Architecture on 0191 260 2191 or visit www.northernarchitecture.com.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .