AEA Consulting
Culture-led Activation of Vacant Urban Infrastructure .
The sky is the limit when it comes to the activation of city centre properties and sites with arts and entertainment activities . From festivals to pop-up exhibitions and event spaces , to longer-term adaptive reuse of former industrial , hospitality , and commercial buildings , artists and creative companies are bringing new uses and audiences to vacant , abandoned , or underutilised spaces .
The aftermath of Covid-19 pandemic has led to a change in many cities ’ urban fabric and required a rethink of how city centres are used by residents and visitors . The change in working and leisure patterns included a further shift away from brick-and-mortar retail , leading to the closure of many commercial and service shops , many of which left behind a significant footprint . The reimagining of these spaces often involves creative uses : from artist studios and workshop spaces to immersive experiences , site-specific performances , and other types of activation of varying duration and scale .
In its work with public and private entities and cultural and creative sector organisations , AEA Consulting increasingly encounters examples of temporary and long-term adaptive reuse of physical infrastructure and the public realm . Some of these initiatives are directly supported by the public sector and local authorities through a set of incentives and measures to attract tenants from the creative sector and encourage private landlords to offer vacant spaces at reduced rates to make them accessible for social and cultural uses . Others have emerged as public-private partnerships , where arts and cultural uses of repurposed buildings are cross-subsidised by commercial leases , e . g . space hire by hospitality and corporate companies .
Tate Modern , Turbine Hall , 2022 . London , UK . Tate Modern is a well-known example of adaptive reuse of a former industrial ( power plant ) building into a cultural space . Since its opening in 2000 , Tate Modern led to the regeneration of the local area and attracts 5 million visitors a year to its riverbank location . Photo by AEA Consulting .
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