Arcade: Artists and Place-making

Glasgow's rapid industrial development in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries left a legacy of unemployment and cramped housing. Nowhere was this more apparent than in the Gorbals area, just south of the river Clyde. The area, as a point of entry to one of the UK's most industrially prolific cities, has a broad significance both locally and nationally; and given the range of ethnic groups which have settled in the area over the last 200 years, it is central to the UK and Scotland's history of international relations. Since the Gorbals area was established in the nineteenth century, numerous efforts have been made to clean it up. The most recent initiative has involved the demolition of the infamous, monolithic 1960s tower blocks, and their replacement with modern, low-rise flats. As this third crack at regeneration comes to a close, 20 artists have been allowed in past the Gorbals' tough exterior, to work with the architects, developers and community in creating permanent and temporary projects relevant to the area.
"Arcade Artists and Place-making" is a documentation by artists, academics, architects, writers and lay commentators of the work surrounding the regeneration of the Gorbals. The book addresses some of the issues that arose during this project, and looks at the work of participating artists - a fascinating exchange that provides insight into the paradigm shifts happening in architecture and public art practise in general. The book appeals to anyone involved with such schemes, such as artists, arts commissioning agencies, architects and urban planners, as well as those with a more general interest in art, culture, and recent UK history, particularly in the context of Scotland as this is a landmark project for Glasgow's urban landscape. "Arcade Artists and Place-making" is essential reading for anyone interested in art regeneration and consultation processes that inform the redevelopment of so much contemporary urbanism.