Community Challenge: Your Local Architecture

I decided to take part in the latest cultural blip challenge.  We are asked to showcase a building that reflects our local culture. I have chosen The Sage Gateshead as an example of architecture in my local area. This afternoon I headed for Gateshead.  I got there late in the day so my photos were taken as it was getting dark.  The main blip shot was taken from the Newcastle side of the River Tyne.  I have added a few extras -  shots of the side view and also one shot I took of the inside.

Some info about The Sage............Sage Gateshead is a concert venue and also a centre for musical education, located in Gateshead on the south bank of the River Tyne, in the North East of England. It opened in 2004.  The centre occupies a curved glass and stainless steel building designed by Norman Foster. Foster and Partners were selected following an architectural design competition.  Norman Robert Foster (Baron Foster of Thames Bank)  is one of Britain's most prolific architects of his generation.

Planning for the centre began in the early 1990s. The planning and construction process cost over £70 million, which was raised primarily through National Lottery grants. The centre has a range of patrons, notably Sage Group which contributed a large sum of money to have the building named after it.  

Sage Gateshead contains three performance spaces -  a 1,700-seater, a 450-seater, and a smaller rehearsal and performance hall.  The building is open to the public throughout the day.  Visitors can see rehearsals, soundchecks and workshops in progress. It has five bars, a brasserie, a café, a gift shop and a function room which holds around 200 people. It has lovely views of the Newcastle and Gateshead Quaysides, the Tyne Bridge and the Gateshead Millennium Bridge.

The building itself has its admirers and detractors. While many people, including locals, hold it to be a fine example of Norman Foster's design, others draw comparisons with a large slug. Personally I love the building.  I love being inside it and I love seeing it from the outside.  Its such a special place - a real one off.

It was bitterly cold today and I was glad when I had finished taking my photos and was was able to catch the bus into Newcastle.  I did a bit of food shopping in Tesco. It was around 5.30pm by this time and I couldn't face trawling round the shops with their " Black Friday " sales - so I just came home. I have been shopping online this evening and ( hopefully ) got a few bargains.

Steps today - 8,436