The North East is peppered with art. Short term cycles of government investment and regeneration programmes can leave them stranded, forgotten and neglected. How can we make the most of them? Maud Webster reflects on these ubiquitous and dynamic features of the urban realm, and how they can evolve to foster community and hope for the future. Each morning, heading to work, I pass Newcastle Civic Centre’s River God (1968). This bronze behemoth clings to the side of the Civic by his feet, left...

Public Conveniences were, and arguably still should be, part of our urban furniture. As part of her wider project on the subject, Maud...