Whenever happens more often, the response of the collective of architects is permeating everything and even major art prizes in the world. Yesterday the Turner Prize jury consolidated, a path which can also be seen in the results of Europan-Spain 13. The jury brandished the following afirmación.-
"In an age in which everything can be art why not consider itself a complex of social housing?".
The Assemble collective, focused their efforts around the Granby Four Streets area in Toxteth, where a self-motivated group of residents had already worked to sustain the neighborhood in the face of repeated calls for demolition. Despite poverty-stricken conditions and a lack of resources, the community had formed its own land trust, and taken the maintenance of the streets and homes into their own hands.
On May, the Guardian explained the reaction of neighbors:
"At the end of Granby Street in Liverpool’s Toxteth, past relentless rows of tinned-up houses punctuated by half-demolished corner shops, the mood is unusually festive. Television crews have been here for the past few days, camping out amid the jungle of pavement plant pots and poking their cameras into tumble-down terraces. But for once they haven’t come to report on the sorry story of urban dereliction that has plagued these streets for the past 30 years. It’s not the usual social affairs correspondents, but packs of bewildered cultural critics – because this is the street that’s been shortlisted for the Turner prize."
The Turner prize exhibition in Glasgow between 1 October-17 January.
Description of the project by SsD
The Granby Four Streets are a cluster of terraced houses in Toxteth, Liverpool that were built around 1900 to house artisan workers. Following the Toxteth riots in 1981, the council acquired many of the houses in the area for demolition and redevelopment. Hundreds of people were moved out the area and houses subsequently fell into disrepair.
Local residents consistently fought plans for demolition and battled to save the houses. Over the past 10 years they have cleaned and planted their streets, painted the empty houses, organized a thriving monthly market, founded a Community Land Trust and shown their area in a different light.
Assemble worked with the Granby Four Streets CLT and Steinbeck Studios to present a sustainable and incremental vision for the area that builds on the hard work already done by local residents and translates it to the refurbishment of housing, public space and the provision of new work and enterprise opportunities.
The approach is characterised by celebrating the value of the area’s architectural and cultural heritage, supporting public involvement and partnership working, offering local training and employment opportunities and nurturing the resourcefulness and DIY spirit that defines the four streets.
