THE FINALE: Our exhibition has drawn to a close! We want to thank all of our undergraduates for their enthusiasm and creative flair throughout the events programme, we hope you enjoyed working with us! Also, a big thank you to our collaborators: Manchester City Council, Purcell, Curated Place, and Whalley Range High School for all the support on both of the proposals.

Group 2 have finished their presentation board and are ready to print ahead of the exhibition (which is tomorrow at 12-2pm in the Central Library). We have also tested our VR model in preparation to make sure it runs smoothly.

Common findings from our school visit included young people in Manchester did not know of the Town Hall's location, what it was currently used for. After presenting the Council's introductory video of the wider restoration project, this gave the school pupils an insight into the interior and the Town Hall's significance within Manchester. Pupils still felt that this would be a passive building and would not harness any attention from them, and wanted to transform Albert Square into a space with interactive activities. Themes included seating, a park atmosphere, sheltered spaces, and the incorporation of digital technology. These ideas have been taken forward by our events groups into a refined scheme.

Group 2 -
Our group is currently developing a concept which allows for a soft, reversible intervention on the front face of the Town Hall and Albert Square. From the interaction with young people on Tuesday, we found that many in the age bracket did not know what the Town Hall was used for and saw it as a dominating and dark building. They specified that they would like the site to be more interactive, and we have taken the Council's aim to be a transparent organisation together with interactive elements to transform Albert Square into a light installation. This will feature a series of densely packed light probes using motion-sensory technology to light up the facade of the Town Hall. Colours from each area of the Square will compete with each other on the facade to promote engagement. We are also looking at using the pockets of space between the probes for relaxed seating and entertainment areas.

We are now beginning to refine our concept designs and are producing diagrams ahead of the draft presentation tomorrow. Using the input from the school pupils, we are also beginning to model our proposals on the digital site model. This has given our students an insight into what is possible through digital modelling and where sketching by hand can be as effective to communicate key ideas.

The final outputs for undergraduates on our event will consist of a VR model and A1 Presentation Board. We will be presenting the proposals to Manchester City Council and Purcell on the second week which will draw the event to a close.

During the events weeks, we will be collating our daily progress into an overall publication which will combine elements of the outputs produced.

A brief history of the Town Hall: Manchester Town Hall was built in 1877 by Alfred Waterhouse. This was because the existing neo-classical Town Hall on King Street had become too small to house the expanding council. Waterhouse’s main ideas were to combine ceremonial spaces for such as the Great Hall and a suite of reception rooms with working spaces for council members and authoritative bodies. The design has successfully included Gothic features with modern innovations such as a warm air heating system. On the exterior, the Town Hall features monuments of some notable figures such as the Roman General Agricola above the Albert Square entrance. The overall cost of the build was £1m. Doors to the public were officially opened on 13 September 1877.

We've also been given some original Waterhouse drawings which we will share during the events programme!

Over the course of our events programme, we will be designing our interactive installations around the Main Entrance and the Albert Square elevation of the Town Hall. We will be making a visit to the site within the first week of events, so please familiarise yourselves with the location!

Atelier: Platform
Undergrad: The University of Manchester
Experience: IBI Group

Our Town Hall is a live restoration project led by Manchester City Council to retain and enhance the cultural heritage of the city’s most iconic venue. Our collaborators - Manchester City Council and Purcell have tasked us with creating interactive installations at the entrances of the Town Hall, collating a visual proposal which engages with the next generation of young people in Manchester. We will be working closely with students from a local secondary school to develop our ideas and jointly re-design elements – making the Town Hall an attractive space which all young people can freely engage with and use.

If you are keen to work with young people and create an interactive virtual reality experience, then we need you!