A Place For Words: Further Up In The Air

What happened?

Further Up In The Air was a project which commissioned eighteen artists over two years to respond to the demolition of the Linosa Tower block in Liverpool, and the regeneration of the area local to it. Further Up In The Air built on the success of an earlier pilot project in another tower block on the same estate - Up In The Air. A broad range of artists spent a month working in one of the tower's empty flats in the period leading up to the block's demolition. One of these artists was the writer, Will Self.

Will Self worked on the top floor. He sat with his back to the open front door and typed on a manual type-writer that was made the same year the flats were built. Will wrote a short story inspired by his residency, which was published in the project book, and later in Dr Mukti and Other Tales of Woe (Bloomsbury, 2004). As he planned and wrote, Will Self pasted each page onto the wall of an empty room in the flat, thus exposing his process of writing.

The response of residents to Further Up In The Air was incredibly positive and evaluations showed a real ownership and educational exchange happening during the project, with residents becoming tour guides during ‘open studios’ when people were invited to visit the art works. The project honoured and valued the place, about to be destroyed, which for many residents had been their homes for years.

Paul Kelly, community development manager for Liverpool Housing Action Trust, who part-funded the project (other funding came from Arts Council England, Lottery Fund, The Henry Moore Sculpture Trust, and Capital of Culture) said:

"Further Up In The Air has given the artists involved the freedom to develop their work without restriction, each commenting in their own unique way on the Linosa Close tower block and its wider regeneration context. From a community development perspective a new way of involving artist within community settings has emerged. Each artist has developed their own individual relationships with both residents and staff and it has been a joy to watch."

Project Gallery

Further Up In The Air 1

Will Self in his flat in Linosa Close

Further Up In The Air 2

The tower blocks being demolished

Further Up In The Air 3

Residents of Sheil Park, Linosa Close

What made it work?

  • Very open-ended briefs. All artists were given the use of a flat and completely free reign to respond in whatever way they saw fit. There was no emphasis on a finished end product.
  • Real community engagement. A lot of work was done to involve and communicate with residents. Residents were involved in one third of the artist appointments.

Further information and links:

Contemporary Art from studio to situation. Published by Black Dog - 2004, edited by Claire Doherty, Shrinking Cities volume 2, isbn 3-7757-1558-4

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