A collaboration and group process exploring the concept of The Artist Hotel for Knowle West, a deeply urban and deprived location on the edge of Bristol's rural landscape. Originated by the Knowle West Media Centre, my outcomes were text, video, intervention and performance based, subsequently feeding into the ideas of The Naming and the peformance It's Time for Da

Layzell, Richard

UAL Research Online

	   	  	  	  1.	  About	  the	  project	  	  The	  Artist	  Hotel:	  Knowle	  West	  is	  a	  collaboration	  between	  Knowle	  West	  Media	  Centre,	  UWE	  Department	  for	  Architecture	  and	  the	  Built	  Environment	  and	  The	  Factory-­‐	  	  KWMC’s	  new	  digital	  fabrication	  space	  in	  South	  Bristol.	  	  	  The	  purpose	  of	  the	  project	  is	  to	  bring	  together	  art,	  architecture,	  and	  community	  provenance	  and	  participation	  to	  explore	  the	  concept	  of	  what	  an	  Artist	  Hotel	  in	  Knowle	  West	  could	  be,	  including	  how	  a	  hotel:	  o could	  be	  designed,	  manufactured	  and	  built;	  o relates	  and	  involves	  the	  local	  community	  and	  landscape;	  o could	  be	  hosted	  by	  artists	  and	  the	  local	  community.	  	  	  The	  content	  and	  material	  created	  through	  the	  project	  will	  be	  developed	  and	  shared	  as	  part	  of	  the	  Bristol	  Art	  Weekender	  and	  the	  Festival	  of	  the	  Future	  City.	  	  	  The	  project	  will	  involve	  working	  with	  the	  local	  community,	  experienced	  architects	  00	  Architects	  and	  Studio	  Weave	  and	  a	  group	  of	  third	  year	  architecture	  students.	  We	  are	  seeking	  a	  small	  number	  of	  artists	  to	  work	  as	  part	  of	  the	  project	  team.	  	  	  	  	  2.	  The	  brief	  The	  purpose	  of	  the	  project	  is	  to	  explore	  the	  concept	  of	  an	  Artist	  Hotel	  in	  Knowle	  West.	  This	  may	  be	  interpreted	  in	  many	  ways:	  a	  hotel	  for	  artists	  –	  considering	  the	  requirements	  of	  artists	  as	  guests/residents;	  or	  a	  hotel	  created	  in	  part	  by	  artists	  –	  considering	  how	  the	  design	  process	  may	  be	  collaborative	  with	  artists	  and	  a	  framework	  for	  others	  to	  complete	  as	  an	  artistic	  act	  in	  terms	  of	  how	  it	  is	  assembled,	  constructed	  and	  hosted.	  	  	  The	  consideration	  of	  the	  relationship	  of	  the	  Artist	  Hotel	  to	  the	  host	  people	  and	  place	  is	  a	  critical	  one.	  What	  role	  and	  how	  could	  the	  landscape,	  assets,	  character	  and	  skill	  base	  of	  the	  neighbourhood	  be	  engaged	  in	  the	  concept,	  manufacture	  and	  hosting	  of	  any	  Artist	  The	  Artist	  Hotel:	  Knowle	  West	  Brief	  for	  artists	  September	  2015	  Hotel?	  What	  is	  the	  role	  of	  the	  artist	  in	  places	  outside	  the	  city-­‐centre	  and	  in	  developing	  alternative	  models	  for	  regeneration?	  	  The	  project	  also	  questions	  what	  it	  is	  to	  be	  ‘at	  home’	  (typically	  rooted	  to	  a	  place)	  in	  relation	  to	  what	  it	  is	  to	  be	  ‘just	  passing	  though’	  (transiting	  through	  a	  place),	  where	  the	  hotel	  room	  sits	  within	  this	  binary,	  and	  what	  it	  means	  to	  be	  a	  host.	  Another	  important	  conceptual	  concern	  is	  how	  to	  approach	  the	  notion	  so	  frequently	  allied	  to	  people’s	  experiences	  and	  perceptions	  of	  staying	  in	  hotels,	  that	  of	  ‘escape’.	  	  The	  Artist	  Hotel	  could	  be	  a	  collective	  entity	  with	  individual	  rooms	  spread	  around	  a	  local	  area,	  perhaps	  in	  spare	  areas	  of	  people’s	  houses	  –	  a	  dispersed	  building.	  This	  would	  enable	  guests	  to	  be	  embedded	  in	  the	  community.	  If	  the	  guests	  are	  artists	  this	  develops	  the	  idea	  of	  the	  artist	  being	  ‘in	  residence’	  in	  line	  with	  the	  professional	  artist	  residency.	  This	  could	  generate	  income	  for	  many	  households	  and	  put	  into	  use	  under-­‐used	  space.	  	  	  	  Or,	  the	  Artist	  Hotel	  could	  be	  part	  of	  a	  mixed-­‐use	  development	  on	  land	  that	  is	  becoming	  available	  adjacent	  to	  Knowle	  West	  Media	  Centre.	  How	  could	  an	  Artist	  Hotel	  challenge	  the	  branded	  experience	  of	  hotel	  chains	  without	  incurring	  the	  cost	  or	  exclusivity	  of	  a	  boutique	  establishment?	  	  	  	  3.	  Residency	  opportunity	  We	  are	  seeking	  a	  small	  number	  of	  artists	  to	  take	  part	  in	  the	  project.	  This	  is	  the	  first	  stage	  of	  what	  we	  anticipate	  will	  be	  a	  wider	  2-­‐5	  year-­‐long	  project.	  	  	  For	  this	  stage	  of	  the	  project,	  the	  key	  roles	  and	  activities	  for	  the	  artists	  will	  include:	  o contributing	  creative	  and	  critical	  thinking	  to	  the	  R&D	  process;	  o providing	  mentoring	  and	  creative	  input	  to	  a	  group	  of	  UWE	  third	  year	  architecture	  students;	  o participating	  in	  the	  Bristol	  Art	  Weekender	  day	  event,	  which	  includes	  a	  curated	  walk	  of	  Knowle	  West,	  charette-­‐style	  discussions	  and	  some	  rapid-­‐prototyping	  using	  digital	  fabrication	  technology	  at	  The	  Factory;	  	  o developing	  and	  presenting	  ‘something’	  that	  reflects	  and	  communicates	  what	  an	  Artist	  Hotel	  in	  Knowle	  West	  could	  be.	  This	  could	  take	  the	  form	  of	  a	  performance,	  participative	  experience,	  made	  item,	  or	  something	  else,	  that	  can	  be	  shared	  with	  an	  audience	  at	  an	  event	  in	  November/December	  2015.	  	  	  	  	  	  	  There	  are	  a	  number	  of	  key	  dates	  that	  the	  artists	  will	  need	  to	  be	  available	  to	  participate	  in,	  including:	  	  9th	  October:	   Project	  initiation	  and	  briefing	  in	  Knowle	  West,	  including	  a	  guided	  tour	  of	  Knowle	  West.	  	  	  30th	  October	  	   	   Bristol	  Art	  Weekender	  event	  at	  The	  Factory.	  	  	  	  16th	  November	   Opening	  of	  exhibition	  at	  KWMC,	  showing	  photography	  and	  prototype	  of	  a	  hotel	  room	   	  	  TBC	   Artist	  performance:	  The	  Artist	  Hotel	  Knowle	  West-­‐	  this	  could	  take	  place	  on	  the	  16th	  November,	  but	  other	  options	  are	  available.	  	  	  	  The	  fee	  for	  this	  residency	  is	  £500	  (including	  expenses	  &	  VAT),	  with	  an	  additional	  materials	  and	  performance	  budget.	  	  	  	  4.	  Contact	  For	  more	  information	  about	  the	  project	  and	  residency	  opportunity,	  please	  contact	  Melissa	  Mean	  on	  07984	  745	  175	  or	  at	  melissa.mean@kwmc.org.uk.	  	  	  	  5.	  About	  the	  partners	  	  	  Knowle	  West	  Media	  Centre	  is	  an	  NPO	  digital	  arts	  charity.	  Since	  it	  was	  set	  up	  in	  1996,	  KWMC	  has	  used	  the	  arts	  and	  digital	  technologies	  to	  support	  people	  to	  imagine	  and	  develop	  ideas	  about	  social	  change,	  prototype	  new	  approaches,	  and	  share	  the	  learning	  across	  the	  UK	  and	  beyond.	  	  	  The	  Department	  of	  Architecture	  and	  the	  Built	  Environment	  at	  UWE	  is	  a	  broad-­‐based	  intellectual	  community	  committed	  to	  an	  inter-­‐disciplinary	  approach	  to	  the	  creation	  and	  management	  of	  sustainable	  buildings,	  whether	  they	  are	  in	  urban	  or	  rural	  environments,	  residential	  or	  commercial,	  new	  or	  refurbished.	  It	  is	  committed	  to	  the	  making	  of	  places	  and	  buildings	  at	  all	  scales,	  encompassing	  regional	  spatial	  strategy,	  construction	  management,	  urban	  design,	  architecture	  and	  the	  design	  of	  interior	  spaces.	  	  	  The	  Factory	  was	  established	  in	  partnership	  with	  Knowle	  West	  Media	  Centre	  as	  a	  start-­‐up	  social	  enterprise	  that	  uses	  digital	  fabrication	  with	  local	  designers	  and	  operators	  to	  produce	  high	  quality	  products	  and	  develop	  skills	  and	  employment	  within	  the	  area.	  	  	  00	  Architecture	  has	  been	  at	  the	  forefront	  of	  developing	  frameworks	  to	  enable	  people	  to	  source	  design	  that	  employs	  digital	  fabrication	  techniques	  to	  locally	  produce	  kits	  for	  buildings	  and	  furniture.	  See	  their	  projects	  OpenDesk	  /	  Wikihouse	  /	  Right	  To	  Build	  for	  details.	  Both	  acclaimed	  design	  practices,	  Studio	  Weave	  and	  00	  Architecture	  are	  increasingly	  working	  in	  partnership	  and	  are	  both	  involved	  in	  the	  Artist	  Hotel.	  	  	  	  All	  the	  partners	  share	  a	  belief	  in	  the	  huge	  potential	  of	  urbanism	  based	  on	  community	  production	  and	  the	  ability	  of	  the	  inhabitants	  of	  settlements	  to	  be	  creative	  within	  their	  environments.	  	  	  	             	  	  

The Artist Hotel

http://ualresearchonline.arts.ac.uk/10898/2/The%20Artist%20Hotel_artist_brief_v1.pdf

The Artist Hotel

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

UAL Research Online