That’s the question facing Clare Rogers, director of estates at Newcastle University, every day. And it’s a question she’s more than happy to answer with an enthusiastic nod of the head and a smile that makes me feel sheepish for asking in the first place. Clare (who admits that while her business is buildings, the acquisition of art is a hotly pursued hobby) is evidently passionate about creating art on campus.
As she tells us, the University makes around half a billion pounds every year. And after our eyes had finished widening and we’d remembered to reclose our mouths, she continued that it seems a discrepancy that so little of those seemingly cavernous coffers has historically been spent on art.
Before the shiny new bronze of Martin Luther King Jr. was unveiled late last year, the last work officially commissioned by the university was the Herschel building’s Spiral Nebula in 1962.

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So why the gap? For an establishment with the top Fine Art department in the country it seems a 55-year oversight that so little was done in this regard. Clare agrees, stating the obvious benefits from funding these projects. Students can often be seen taking photos of public arts and politicians and ambassadors frequently visit to view the MLK sculpture. So it’s hardly wasted money. Clare started working at the University in 2000 and began buying pieces of art from student exhibitions, leading to the institution of the palindromic bridge to Robinson library and various sculptures in the Devonshire building. The pleasingly named Coherent Campus was alliteratively created and commenced to contribute cold cash to creative campaigns of cohesive landscaping.

Later the Art on Campus group was formed. These are who are responsible for the three large heads directly in front of the Armstrong building being bought for our sitting pleasure. When asked what the process for this acquisition was, Clare happily admits that there is no real procedure. While the lack of a uniform practise for the intake of art has led to several projects being scuppered due to individual taste, she believes this is the better way to go about things. Anything goes. Any style. “As soon as you start decreeing what you will or won’t have, you’ve killed it”. There have been some recent advancements, she encourages. Sir Antony Gormley, creator of a small piece of local sculpture you may be familiar with named The Angel of the North, has agreed to lend an original work to the university for five years. The tall statue has just been approved with planning permission and will stand directly in front of the student union. Clare hopes the uni will quickly warm to the work and purchase it when the trial period is up.

In April 2018, the aforementioned Art on Campus group received a particular remit and blessing from the university’s executive board to work as a more formal group. Clare says she would love to celebrate more of Newcastle University’s own art professors. While these people are always working and creating, their works are most commonly condemned to the basements of the art buildings and she is extremely interested in bringing this outside for people to enjoy.

So as far as the university goes, it appears things are looking up. While the Art of Campus team are currently doing what they can to celebrate themes of people, culture and nationalities, Clare hopes that a proper remit and budget can change the landscape of an institution that’s been, for too long, kept out of the publicly creative loop.