CASE STUDIES - Helix Arts

CASE STUDIES
Visions of Utopia
Visions of Utopia, a multi-event festival in the autumn of 1997 is one of the
most ambitious projects undertaken by Helix Arts to date. Aimed at “enabling
everyone to identify and explore visions of better lives and the better worlds they
would like to inhabit” the project included visual arts, theatre, poetry, seminars,
lectures, discussions, performances, internet-based events and a dedicated
radio station.
Visions of Utopia comprised almost fifty separate strands, and it is not possible
to describe all of them here. Radio Utopia, a short-licence FM station staffed
by Sunderland University students and local people, broadcast documentaries,
sound-scapes, new music and other material to the Sunderland area, and to
people around the world through the web-site. South Shields was host to a
lantern festival ‘Utopian Lights’, with a silk painting project taking place in
Barrow-in-Furness. A play ‘Pigs’ Meat’ was created based on the life and work
of the Newcastle-born radical political thinker Thomas Spence (1750-1814).
One of the projects that extended beyond the & Unseen’. This interdisciplinary
project brought together artists, scientists, and the people of the village of
Quaking Houses in County Durham to tackle former mining industry pollution
in a local burn through the
design and construction of a
wetland. The project also led
to a major conference, book,
website and the appointment of
an artist in residence working on
a project tackling water pollution
in Skinningrove, Cleveland.
Skinningrove. Photo: Jean Grant.

A further ‘Visions of Utopia’ project led to the placement of artist Alex Julyan
and composer Cameron Sinclair who worked with offenders in Castletown,
Sunderland, creating an interactive sound installation and sculpture in St
Margaret’s Church exploring issues of community safety.
Interactive sound sculpture – Probation clients worked alongside two contemporary
artists to create an installation in St Margaret’s Church, Sunderland.
Photo: Lynne Otter.
PIONEERING COLLABORATIVE PARTNERSHIPS THROUGH THE ARTS
Helix Arts, 2nd Floor, The Old Casino, 1-4 Forth Lane, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 5HX. E-mail: info@helixarts.com Web: www.helixarts.com
Helix Arts is revenue funded by Arts Council England, North East. Registered Charity No. 700956