Public see library in new (7m high) light
INFLATABLE ARTWORK GOES ON DISPLAY
A GIANT inflatable as tall as two double decker buses is lighting up Newcastle’s City Library as part of a forthcoming exhibition.
The seven-metre high installation is one of three created by North East environmental artist Steve Messam, which will be on display at the library for the next two months.
Steve has been artist-in-residence at the City Library, on New Bridge Street, as part of a forthcoming exhibition of work entitled Love Big Books.
His site-specific installation exploring ‘size and space’ has resulted in three large-scale creatively lit inflatables.
As well as the large inflatable which can be seen from outside the building, the artist has also positioned lit-up inflatables in the library’s plant room and in the general fiction and science fiction sections on the building’s third floor.
‘Love Big Books’ is an exhibition of
work by 22 of the region’s visual artists, writers, performers, dancers and musicians, who have created artistic responses to the City Library’s rarelyseen collection of ‘Fifth-Sized’ books.
These outsized volumes, known to very few readers, cover numerous subjects and their size alone is what brings them together in their own small corner of the building.
The creation and exhibition of new work is being delivered in association with Newcastle Libraries and funded by Arts Council England.
Steve said: “The thing that really inspired me was the architecture itself, and what the architecture means within the building.
“It’s about scale and light but also how the public use the library space, accompanied by the bits that people don’t see.
“How the building breathes and how the building functions. I wanted to explore every aspect and facet of the library and not just the facade that everybody experiences day-to-day.”
Photographs of Steve’s work will be printed and compiled into their very own Fifth-Sized book.
Kim McGuinness, Newcastle City Council’s cabinet member for culture and communities, said: “The Love Big Books exhibition is a wonderful way of showing the public a library in a totally different light.
“It’s a celebration of what libraries have to offer people, seen through creative eyes.”
Love Big Books is a free exhibition that takes place between November 2-17 at Newcastle’s City Library.