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Our Story – Gateshead

January - March 2026

Take a look at our exhibition that showcased the legacy of Helix Arts’ work in Gateshead.

Image by Michael Pinsky

Contexts:

Community / Gateshead

Partners:

Gateshead Central Library

People:

Kristopher McKie / Katie Jayne Appleyard

Tags:

How can art and creativity help build communities?

For over forty years, Helix Arts has been supporting communities and artists across the North East to work together to confront social issues and bring about meaningful change.

This exhibition, co curated with young people from Youth Focus North East, explored the legacy of the organisation’s work in Gateshead and asked how shared culture and everyday creativity could continue to help us renew and strengthen our sense of community in a rapidly changing world.

Re:Visits – Our Story An Exhibition by Helix Arts
24 January – 18 April 2026
The Gallery, Gateshead Central Library

Visitors were invited to come along to this free exhibition – featuring unique artworks made by young people alongside items from the Helix Arts archive – and help celebrate the legacy and the future of community art.

Check out some the exhibition here!

How can art help us address the issues that matter?

Sometimes words alone can’t communicate how we feel about some of the issues and challenges that affect our society. By working together to make art we can find new ways to think about social, political and environmental issues, use our creativity to draw attention to them and motivate other people to get involved.

Climate Change, Cultural Change was an ambitious project delivered by Helix Arts across Newcastle and Gateshead that used art to find new ways to talk about climate change. As part of this project, artist Michael Pinsky worked with other local artists as well as staff from Newcastle University to create an artwork featuring cars floating up the River Tyne. The artwork was designed to draw attention to flooding risks and overcongestion and was seen by thousands of people.

What are the issues that matter to you and how would you get people to think about them?

Making It Happen

‘Make It Happen was my first introduction to participatory art. It was the first time I got to work in my own community which was groundbreaking for me. It made me look at the art world in a completely different way.’

Chris Folwell, Visual Artist

Since 1983, Helix Arts has been supporting artists and communities to work together to create high quality art. We do this through dedicated programmes that offer support, development opportunities and funding to artists and communities.

Make It Happen is one of our most significant and longest running programmes, supporting artists and communities to devise and develop projects that use art to bring about positive change. The programme began in Gateshead in 2015 with funding from Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, Gateshead Council and, later, the National Lottery Community Fund.

Make It Happen supported many local artists to develop their community practice and gain skills in everything from planning to fundraising. The programme produced a wealth of bold and ambitious projects.

The artists featured here were all supported through Make It Happen.

Related Projects

Our Story

2024 - 2026

Two‑year Heritage Lottery project celebrating 40 years of our story, reconnecting past and present through voices across the North East.
Image of event flyer. White background with pink, purple and cyan text. Text reads: Saturday 23 March 2024, 11am - 4pm North Tyneside Business Centre 54a Saville Street, North Shields, NE30 1NT Take part, enjoy, experience creative workshops, live performances, film retrospective and exhibition. Everyone welcome. Free event. Full programme details coming soon.

Re:Visits

June 2023 - 2024

Celebrating 40 years of Helix Arts working with artists and communities!

Share your story | Shape our future.
A picture of Amy, a smiling person with short cropped dark hair, chunky framed glasses, large hoop earrings and a septum piercing. They have tattoos and are wearing dungerees with a rainbow pin badge.

Narrative Shift: A Re:Visits Commission

Ongoing

A Disabled Artist Led Commission for Helix Arts. Part of our Re:Visits programme. Inspired by our past with the aim of informing our future.
A collage produced during a Make It Happen project

Make It Happen

2018 - ongoing

A flexible, participant-centred programme that provides training and support to encourage and enable people to design, manage and deliver their own activities with their own communities and with experts in the field.

Thank you to our funders.

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