Open Estate
Open Estate, a collaborative arts-led heritage programme, documented the memories and reflections of residents of the Gascoigne Estate in Barking, a large housing estate in London that is currently being redeveloped to make way for new housing. Developed by Studio 3 Arts (itself based on the estate) in partnership with Parasite Ceramics, it involved artists, heritage professionals, local community groups and residents, aiming to uncover the social history of the estate before it vanishes.
As a lead artist researcher within the team, my role was to contribute to a wide-ranging programme of exploration and activity, developing and delivering community activities to stimulate engagement and memory development. With a regeneration taking place over a period of more than ten years, even children currently at primary school are holders of a disappearing narrative.
As a lead artist researcher within the team, my role was to contribute to a wide-ranging programme of exploration and activity, developing and delivering community activities to stimulate engagement and memory development. With a regeneration taking place over a period of more than ten years, even children currently at primary school are holders of a disappearing narrative.
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The first phase of the project saw the development of the Living Museum, an empty shop space in St Mary's Parade, used by the artist team for creative exploration, workshop delivery, as a meeting place, and community hub. When we opened up the space it had been empty and unused for more than two years (although the milk left in the fridge was fairly opinionated).
Following 18 months of community-led creative activity, conversation and research, the Open Estate Festival ran between 17 and 21 September. As part of the Open House London festival of architecture, we displayed photos, sounds, stories and objects collected from and donated by residents, and found on the Gascoigne Estate across the last year.
The Layers of London project reviewed the festival exhibition as " a fascinating collection..." with hidden values
Apart from its obvious benefits in bringing a community together to share and support each other during a period of significant change, a project like Open Estate is of great value to urbanists, and to those historians of the future who can look back at its photos, its drawings and its recordings, and understand first-hand what sort of community this was, in many different ways.
More details www.open-estate.info, www.facebook.com/OpenEstate
Following 18 months of community-led creative activity, conversation and research, the Open Estate Festival ran between 17 and 21 September. As part of the Open House London festival of architecture, we displayed photos, sounds, stories and objects collected from and donated by residents, and found on the Gascoigne Estate across the last year.
The Layers of London project reviewed the festival exhibition as " a fascinating collection..." with hidden values
Apart from its obvious benefits in bringing a community together to share and support each other during a period of significant change, a project like Open Estate is of great value to urbanists, and to those historians of the future who can look back at its photos, its drawings and its recordings, and understand first-hand what sort of community this was, in many different ways.
More details www.open-estate.info, www.facebook.com/OpenEstate
Light-up Towers
These simple paper towers, reflecting the blocks across the estate were made by local children. This techniques was expanded as part of a school-orientated 'Memory Collector's Kit'.
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Estate Stamp prints
An ever-expanding kit of simple stamp images, developed via participant suggestions, allowed people to make their own postcards using imagery derived from their history and the regeneration process.
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Memory Collector's Kit
This school-orientated kit enabled young people to act as project ambassadors, collecting memories from their families and friends for the Living Museum.
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Object scanography
Recording images using a modified scanner as a large-format camera, created a digital library of the objects people value most for their associations with the estate and their time living there.
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