Spanish City dome is finally looking a picture of health
Sep 7 2010 by Sarah Scott, The Journal
THE restoration of an iconic dome in the North East has been caught on camera.
Rebecca Davis, 26, has spent over two years photographing the interior of the Spanish City dome in Whitley Bay.
The images taken by the former Whitley Bay High School student will be displayed on the first floor of the building as part of the Heritage Open Days and to celebrate the building’s centenary.
Rebecca said: “Being able to exhibit my work in the dome itself, having spent several years photographing the building, is a very exciting opportunity for me. I’m proud that this project has allowed me to be involved in Whitley Bay’s regeneration, which is something that I feel very passionate about as I grew up in the town.”
The 6ft by 4ft images will be suspended from the columns that trace the Dome’s circular shape. Rebecca aims to evoke memories by showing evidence of the building’s past grandeur.
The day after the opening Rebecca will celebrate another big day as she walks down the aisle to marry her fiance Gary, who she has been with for eight years.
“It has worked out really well because I would have been gutted if I had been on my honeymoon for the opening of the exhibition,” she said.
Rebecca attended Whitley Bay High School and Tynemouth College. She was awarded a BA Hons in Contemporary Photographic Practice from Northumbria University in 2006.
In 2007 she started a photographic residency at the dome, which was supported by the Arts Council and North Tyneside Council.
“I have taken thousands of pictures and have seen the dome evolving. I could only display one set of images so I have chosen very close up details of the things that were left behind.
“People remember the dome as a happy place and remember fun times. I want my work to be very positive,” she said.
North Tyneside Council will open the doors of the dome to the public for the first time in more than five years on Thursday.
In addition to Rebecca’s photography exhibition on the first floor, the ground floor will feature an exhibition of memories of the dome and Spanish City site that the council commissioned Whitley Bay-based creative design company Black Dog Design to produce.
The dome will be open to the public from 10am to 4pm between Thursday and Sunday.
The public and their relationship with the dome over the past 100 years will also be recognised in a commemorative book by Northern Voices Community projects, based in Whitley Bay.
