On a wave of post-war optimism, Manchester's planners dreamt of visionary infrastructure projects to modernise the city. This exhibition showcases four of the proposed projects' drawings, videos, promotional materials and contemporary newspaper cut-outs. Two of the projects went ahead and two never made it from the draughtsman's drawing board, and have been gathering dust until now.
The two completed projects are the A57(M), more lovingly known as the Mancunian Way, and the Guardian Telephone Exchange. The Mancunian Way, connecting the quays on the west of the city to the railway goods yards on the east, was one of many elevated highways pencilled in for the city. Akin to the conceptual infrastructure Le Corbusier dreamt up for American cities, it details a seemingly aggressive dissection and regrouping of the city.
The next completed project on show, the Guardian telephone exchange, reveals the plans for a code-named shelter from the Cold War era. Partnered with a shelter in Birmingham and another one in London they were to act as emergency communications hubs in the event of nuclear war. The exchange is still intact, though much neglected.
The first of the unrealised dreams is also of the subterranean kind. The Picc-Vic underground railway was intended to connect Piccadilly Station in the south, to Victoria station in the north, and provide a through connection from Stockport to Bolton. The artist mock-ups and promotional material (including what looks like an arcade game showing the layout of the proposed line) are particularly impressive.
Do not miss the final project, tucked away in the Riba Hub shop, which details a proposed city centre heliport, which would have allowed fifteen minute journeys from the city centre to the airport. The concept drawing is remarkable and shows Manchester as a futuristic bastion of post-war modernity.
The material on display is a diverse and fascinating array, ranging from architectural plans, photographs, artist's impressions and ephemera, that would certainly benefit from a more detailed study than the accompanying explanatory text could detail. There is a forthcoming catalogue which will be available from the curator directly. This is an exhilarating exhibition that demonstrates Manchester's ambition to become a truly modern city.
Infra_Manc finishes on Saturday 17th March, admission is free and the CUBE is open 12.00 to 17.30 Mon - Fri and 12.00 - 17.00 on Sat. To make the journey even more worthwhile, RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) are having a Winter Warmer promotion on until the end of March, which includes a free slice of cake when you buy a large hot drink in the café next to the exhibition, you can find the voucher here: http://www.architecture.com/RegionsAndInternational/UKNationsAndRegions/England/RIBANorthWest/RIBAHub.aspx.
More info is available in the press release here: http://www.cube.org.uk/uploads/documents/infra_manc/infra_manc_press_release_final_a.pdf
The exhibition is curated by Richard Brook (Manchester School of Architecture) and Martin Dodge (Department of Geography, University of Manchester), with support and help from MIRIAD, Museum of Transport Greater Manchester, and Greater Manchester County Record Office with the City Archives.
Key to photos (top to bottom)
image 1: landscaping proposals for one of the roundabouts of the Mancunian Way motorway, 1965
image 2: Artist's impression of Royal Exchange Station, a proposed new underground station as part of the Picc-Vic railway tunnel scheme, 1972 (Dravid Fricker. Image: Darnton EGS)
image 3: artist's impression of the proposed heliport on Victoria train station, 1956 (image: Manchester archives)
Review by Nicholas Thorley