DOCSLIB.ORG

Enterprise Zones: Do They Create Or Transfer Value? Received: 17Th October, 2011

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Enterprise Zones: Do They Create Or Transfer Value? Received: 17Th October, 2011 Wainwright:JSC page.qxd 10/01/2012 14:49 Page 124 Enterprise Zones: Do they create or transfer value? Received: 17th October, 2011 Simon Wainwright is a graduate of the University of Reading and a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors; he has more than 30 years’ experience in private practice in the UK and specialises in property investment, development and appraisal. His practice, J Peiser Wainwright has advised Canary Wharf Group and Land Securities on major regeneration projects with a combined value in excess of £2bn; he has also undertaken investment transactions in Enterprise Zones throughout the UK. Abstract This paper considers whether any lessons have been learnt from the Enterprise Zones (EZs) of the 1980s and whether providing economic stimuli creates, distorts or simply transfers value. Key issues include: — How do the 2011 EZs differ from their 1980s predecessors? — Land value as a residual, determined by the economic activity that can take place on a plot of land; therefore bestowing economic advantages selectively will distort land values. — Enterprise Zones will undoubtedly cause the displacement of existing jobs to more economically marginal areas. — Previous attempts at creating areas which enjoy economic advantages include Regional Development Agencies and Freeports; this paper examines what lessons, if any, can be learned from these that could be applied to EZs. — Could EZ benefits be applied across the entire UK? — The benefits of the 1980s EZs were largely captured by property and land owners rather than local businesses; who will receive the benefits from the current generation of EZs? — Jobs are as likely to be generated in the retail sector as the manufacturing sector; does this matter? — The success of the London Docklands Enterprise Zone can largely be attributed to improved transport infrastructure; such transport proposals are missing from the current proposals. Keywords: Enterprise Zones, value, advantages, Canary Wharf, Merry Hill, Freeport, Docklands, business rates, investment, jobs, infrastructure Enterprise Zones (EZs) were first economically successful British Crown Simon Wainwright introduced into the UK in the 1980s with Colony of Hong Kong. Some 30 years J. Peiser Wainwright, 20 King Street, the objective of creating designated later, the British Government has London EC2V 8EG, UK economic areas which were free of tax, reintroduced the same concept, but what Tel: +44 (0)20 7776 2930 regulation and constraints, where dynamic lessons have been learned from the earlier Fax: +44 (0)20 7776 2931 e-mail: info@jpeiser businesses could grow and flourish; the experiences, and what can be done to wainwright.com concept was modelled on the ensure that new jobs are created rather 124 Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal Vol. 5, 2, 124–131 ᭧ Henry Stewart Publications 1752-9638 (2012) Wainwright:JSC page.qxd 10/01/2012 14:49 Page 125 Enterprise Zones than simply transferred from neighbouring inferred that both rent and land values are areas? a residual sum, determined by the value The original 1980s EZs bestowed a that can be generated from one plot of wide range of economic and political land in comparison with the value that advantages on the businesses that located can be generated from another plot of in these designated areas; these included: land, taking into account the relative costs of production and transport between two —exemption from business rates (local locations, all other factors being equal. taxation) for commercial and industrial A practical example of this can be seen property in retail rents, where high street shops in —100 per cent allowance for corporation the prime pitch command a higher rent and income tax purposes for capital than identically sized shops in a more expenditure on industrial and secondary location, as a result of the commercial construction additional revenue that can be generated —exemption from Development Land Tax from the relative differences in footfall and (since abolished) turnover. Today, many other factors also —a simplified planning regime where influence the differential in land values, planning permission was not required including differences in the specification for developments conforming with the of buildings erected on the land, user EZ published plan constraints (either legal or planning), —assisted HM Customs’ procedures technological advances, infrastructure, —a reduction in government requests for energy costs and business rates (local tax). statistical information It follows that if one takes two identical —Industrial Training Board levies did not and adjacent plots of land and bestows apply economic advantages on one but not the —prioritised telecommunication facilities. other, a difference will arise in both the rental and capital value of the two land The benefits were limited to a period of plots as a direct consequence. Occupiers only ten years, and they were designed to will be prepared to pay a higher rent on the stimulate economic growth and create parcel of land enjoying the economic new jobs: some worked spectacularly, benefits than for the same land without the while others did not. In March 2011, the benefits, on the basis that it is capable of British Government announced that a generating additional profits. The question further 21 new EZs would be created, but then arises as to whom this economic is it wishful thinking to assume that they advantage should accrue: the landowner in will emulate the success seen in the the form of additional rent, the occupier in London Docklands? The current debate is the form of additional profit or the whether EZs create economic growth or government in the form of additional distort the market by simply transferring taxation. In EZs, the objective has been for value from neighbouring areas. the advantage to accrue initially to the Ricardo formulated his ‘Law of rent’1 in occupier in the form of additional profit, in 1809; this states that the rent of a plot of order to stimulate economic development, land is equal to the economic advantage growth and the creation of new jobs; in obtained by using the land in its most practice, this has not always been the case, productive way, relative to the advantage as was seen with the dramatic rise in rents obtained by using marginal land for the and land values in the London Docklands same purpose, given the same inputs of in the 1980s, benefiting the landowner labour and capital. From this it can be rather than the occupier. ᭧ Henry Stewart Publications 1752-9638 (2012) Vol. 5, 2, 124–131 Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal 125 Wainwright:JSC page.qxd 10/01/2012 14:49 Page 126 Wainwright The concept of creating economic The Queenborough property included a zones enjoying financial advantages and substantial area of open land used for subsidies is not new in the UK, and many storage which was directly comparable other policies have been used to try to with the open land used for storage in stimulate the creation of new jobs and Sheerness Docks; this is a good example growth: examples include Regional Aid of the differential in rent and land values such as that provided by the Welsh that can occur between two adjacent land Development Agency which, for a 30-year plots where one enjoys financial period from 1976 until 2006, tried to advantages. The rental differential between stimulate business development and these two comparable properties was inward investment into Wales. The success significant, with the rent on the property of the agency in attracting inward in Queenborough being sufficiently investment was recently the subject of a discounted to persuade Mazda to remain Commons Select Committee Inquiry,2 outside the Freeport area, despite the where the experience with LG Electronics financial advantages enjoyed by occupiers was re-examined. The Committee report within the Freeport area of Sheerness details the development of a new factory Docks. for the Korean company LG Electronics The new 2011 EZs will offer occupiers in Newport, Wales, which should have the following economic advantages: created 6,000 jobs when it was announced in 1996, being hailed the largest single —business rate discount worth up to inward investment in Europe. In reality it £275,000 per business over a five-year created fewer than 3,000 jobs at a cost of period £131m to Welsh public bodies, although —all business rates growth within the some £71m was subsequently clawed zone to be retained in the local area to back when it closed in 2003, leaving the support local reinvestment, for a period taxpayer with a net cost of £60m. LG of at least 25 years Electronics then moved production to a —government assistance to develop plant in Poland, which subsequently simplified planning approaches for the closed; production has now been moved EZ to China. —government support to ensure that Freeports are another example of areas superfast broadband is rolled out enjoying special economic advantages, throughout the zone, by use of public including deferment of HM Customs’ funding if necessary duties, EU levies and VAT on imported —enhanced capital allowances for plant goods. In the late 1990s, J Peiser and machinery investment to a limited Wainwright sold an industrial property number of EZs in Assisted Areas. investment in Queenborough, Sheerness, Kent; the property was leased to Mazda In announcing the new EZs (see Tables 1 and consisted of land and buildings used and 2), Prime Minister David Cameron to receive and store imported cars from said: ‘We are determined to do everything Japan, to de-wax, repair and prepare the we can to make Britain the best place in vehicles before onward shipment to the world to start and grow a business.’3 dealers. The rental value of the Mazda By confining these economic advantages property at Queenborough stood at a to a limited number of EZs though, they substantial disadvantage to adjacent are bound to divert business from the properties within the adjacent Sheerness surrounding areas to these more Docks which enjoyed ‘Freeport’ status.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Guide Price £145,000 72 Church Street, Brierley Hill, West Midlands
    72 Church Street, Brierley Hill, West Midlands, DY5 3QN Guide Price £145,000 A great opportunity to purchase this THREE BEDROOM end terraced property IN NEED OF A LITTLE UPDATING located in Brierley Hil l. This family home benefits from gas central heating, double glazing and has great potential for improvement. Briefly comprising: porch, entrance hall, lounge, dining room, kitchen breakfast room, three bedrooms and a bathroom. There is a walled garden to the front and to the rear is a fully enclosed garden with patio. EPC:D NO CHAIN www. bloorekingkav.co.uk [email protected] 0121 550 4151 Property Description Porch Kitchen Location Door leads to the entrance hall. Minton tile floor. A range of units incorporating: single bowl stainless Brierley Hill is a small town situated approximately 2.5 miles steel sink and drainer, plumbing and space for a south of central Dudley and 2 miles north of Stourbridge. Part Entrance Hall washing machine and space for a stand alone cooker. of the Black Country, and is best known for glass and steel Stairs to the first floor. Windows to the rear and side and door to the side. manufacturing, although the industry has declined considerably since the 1970s. One of the largest factories in the area was Front Reception Room Landing the Round Oak Steelworks, which was closed down and 4.61m x 4.03m (15' 1" x 13' 3") at widest point. Bay Split level with doors leading to the first floor rooms. redeveloped in the 1980s to become the Merry Hill Shopping window to the front.
    [Show full text]
  • Brierley Hill Area Action Plan Publication Document General Information I General Information Dudley
    Contents Dudley General information i 1 Introduction 1 Council 2 Understanding Brierley Hill 7 3 Spatial Vision and Objectives 15 Brierley 4 The Spatial Strategy 21 Hill 5 Other Requirements for Achieving the Vision 57 Area 6 Implementation 87 Action 7 Monitoring 95 Plan 1 Brierley Hill Town Centre Implementation Framework 107 Publication 1.1 Stage 1: 2009-2011 109 1.2 Stage 2: 2009-2016 114 Document 1.3 Stage 3: 2011-2016 134 1.4 Stage 4: 2016-2021 140 1.5 Stage 5: 2021-2026 153 2 Summary of Development Outputs & Infrastructure Requirements in Brierley Hill Town Centre 2009-2026 157 2.1 Stage 1: 2009-2011 158 2.2 Stage 2: 2009-2016 160 2.3 Stage 3: 2011-2016 166 2.4 Stage 4: 2016-2021 168 2.5 Stage 5: 2021-2026 173 3 Public Transport Infrastructure Improvements 175 4 Housing Trajectory 181 5 Superseded Policies 183 6 Glossary 187 7 Key to Urban Quarters Maps 195 Contents Dudley Council Brierley Hill Area Action Plan Publication Document General information i General information Dudley This and other Local Development Framework documents are or will be made Council available on request in large copy print, audio cassette, Braille or languages other than English. If you require the document in one of these formats please contact: Brierley Planning Policy Team, Directorate of the Urban Environment, 3 St James's Road, Dudley, DY1 1HZ or tel 01384 816967 or email [email protected] Hill Area Arabic Action Plan Publication Document Bengali Chinese General information Urdu Punjabi Gujarati ii Dudley Council Brierley Hill Area Action Plan Publication Document 1 Introduction 1 1 Introduction Dudley 1.1 The designation of a new town centre at Brierley Hill by the Secretary of Council State in January 2008 presented a remarkable opportunity for regeneration and place making.
    [Show full text]
  • Whole Day Download the Hansard
    Thursday Volume 685 10 December 2020 No. 150 HOUSE OF COMMONS OFFICIAL REPORT PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) Thursday 10 December 2020 © Parliamentary Copyright House of Commons 2020 This publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Open Parliament licence, which is published at www.parliament.uk/site-information/copyright/. 969 10 DECEMBER 2020 970 right across every sector—over £100 billion for the House of Commons furloughing scheme, the self-employed income support scheme, grants, loans, VAT deferrals—and for freelancers Thursday 10 December 2020 we know the best thing we can do is get our sectors back up and running. That is what the culture recovery fund The House met at half-past Nine o’clock is all about. PRAYERS Tracy Brabin (Batley and Spen) (Lab/Co-op): Today, research from the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre has shown that in the last six months there have [MR SPEAKER in the Chair] been 55,000 job losses in music and the performing and Virtual participation in proceedings commenced visual arts—all that talent, dedication and diversity of (Order, 4 June). voices lost. Our creative workers are desperate to get [NB: [V] denotes a Member participating virtually.] back to doing what they do best, and we know the simplest way to get money to freelancers is to make BUSINESS BEFORE QUESTIONS shows, but to do that producers need a safety net. Germany has just announced an indemnity fund so INDEPENDENT REVIEW OF MATERNITY event organisers can plan for the second half of 2021 SERVICES without the financial risk posed by a potential covid Resolved, outbreak.
    [Show full text]
  • Currumbin Creek Railway Bridge (Former) LHR0075 Place Details
    Currumbin Creek Railway Bridge (former) LHR0075 Place details Address/location Currumbin Creek Title details Principle period(s) 1902 - 1961 City of Gold Coast division 13, 14 Other known names Sarawak Avenue pedestrian bridge, Currumbin Creek pedestrian bridge, South Coast Railway Bridge No. 21 Area for protection Bridge plus 5 metre heritage boundary Place components Bridge superstructure, abutments, location and height in Currumbin Creek Place category Bridge Context In-situ Other listings Register entry date 5 June 2018 Statement of heritage significance The former Currumbin Creek Railway Bridge is a place of local heritage significance for its historic importance, rarity, potential to yield information, class characteristics, technical achievement and special association as evidenced by, but not exclusive to, the following statement of heritage significance, based on criteria (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f) and (h) of the Gold Coast Local Heritage Register. Criterion (a) Historic importance The construction of the South Coast Railway Line was a critical part of the economic development of the Gold Coast and an important link between Brisbane and the New South Wales border. The remaining infrastructure associated with the South Coast Railway line, including the Currumbin Creek Railway Bridge, demonstrates the evolution of the state railway network on the Gold Coast and throughout Queensland. The railway line was a result of a movement towards a new maturity for the Gold Coast region, then known as the South Coast. The provision of expensive rail technology signalled the region had moved into the modern age and that local influence of government and the need for public resources was coming to the fore.
    [Show full text]
  • 'Entering the Age of the Hypermarket Cinema': the First Five Years of the Multiplex in the United Kingdom. Stuart Hanson, De
    ‘Entering the age of the hypermarket cinema’: the first five years of the multiplex in the United Kingdom. Stuart Hanson, De Montfort University, Leicester ___________________ Abstract: During the first five years of its development from the opening of The Point in Milton Keynes in 1985 the multiplex cinema radically changed the previous exhibition landscape, modernising the business of cinema exhibition, and shifting the site of film consumption to new, out-of-town shopping and leisure centres. This article considers some key developments in the first five years of the multiplex cinema’s introduction in the UK, with particular emphasis on three aspects of multiplex diffusion: the importance of regeneration and enterprise; the multiplex’s role in stimulating associated leisure and commercial developments; and out-of-town and regional shopping developments. In order to illustrate these themes, the article will consider the opening of four complexes: The Cannon in Salford Quays, and the AMC multiplexes in Telford in Shropshire, Sheffield and Dudley Merry Hill, in the West Midlands. (136 words) 1 Introduction It appears to us that the record of the cinema industry in the United States has been better than that of the British industry…in attracting the public into its cinemas. (Monopolies and Mergers Commission, 1983, para.8.8). At the Cinema Exhibitors Association annual conference in 1986 there was a degree of consternation at several multiplex cinemas that had recently opened or were about to open, with one delegate arguing that Britain was ‘entering the age of the hypermarket cinema’; whilst another observed pointedly that the ‘industry was being hijacked by the American companies’ (Screen International, 524, November 23, 1986: 16).
    [Show full text]
  • Presentation of the Biennial Foto/Industria 2017
    PRESENTATION OF THE BIENNIAL FOTO/INDUSTRIA 2017 Inauguration 12 October in Bologna 14 exhibitions in 14 symbolic venues of the city Inauguration 12 October 2017 in Bologna > Exhibition at MAST from 12 October 2017 to 7 January 2018 > Exhibitions in the city centre from 12 October to 19 November 2017 Free admission The world of work in all of its forms, focused on the themes of Identity and Illusion in photography, is at the heart of this third edition of the Foto/Industria Biennial in Bologna. The festival, promoted and produced by the MAST Foundation and directed by François Hébel, will take the form of fourteen exhibitions on view from 12 October to 19 November at 13 historic locations in the city centre and at MAST. Following the great success of the last edition, the 2017 programme confirms the intention of the MAST Foundation to offer cultural initiatives of the highest level to an increasingly varied and enthusiastic public and the will of the city of Bologna to promote artistic activities linked to the tradition and history of industry. “Bologna is a city of culture and art, the seat of the oldest university in the western world, an authentic gem still hidden in the heart of Italy,” declares Matteo Lepore, city councillor for the economy and promotion of the city, tourism and international relations. “Our cultural treasures are conserved in the many museums in the medieval city centre and the metropolitan area, in the permanent collections and in temporary exhibitions. In this context, Foto/Industria is as precious as a diamond, an outstanding event that adds additional lustre to the cultural proposals of our territory every two years.
    [Show full text]
  • 1980'S Black Country Waste Disposal Hauliers
    www.ategrus.org 1980’s Black Country Waste Disposal Hauliers By Tim Byrne MCIWM Chartered Waste Manager. ISWA International Waste Manager Cartaways, Clugston Reclamation, Leigh Environmental and A.Smith and Sons (Waste Disposal). Remember these? All these waste disposal companies used to be a familiar sight on the Black Country’s roads. How did these companies develop across the Black Country and, more to the point, where did they go? Cartaways was Stourbridge based, and was started by the late Norman Cartwright who already owned and operated a transport business. He purchased his first new chain lift type skip loader in the 1960’s from Meiller in Germany which was mounted onto a Dodge chassis. The company grew quickly and more skip loader vehicles were added to the fleet. www.ategrus.org By the 1980’s, Cartaways had been sold to Little Heywood Transport of Burton Upon Trent. After the sale, Little Heywood Transport retained the Cartaways name as it was a recognised brand across the Black Country. The fleet expanded from using conventional type chain lift skip loaders to hook lifts (roll‐on‐offs) and industrial rear end loaders. Rear end loaders were a mobile compaction vehicle and more cost effective than the conventional chain lift skip lorry. A rear end loader could compress and collect six‐eight skip loads of waste compared to the conventional chain lift skip lorry having to make six‐eight separate journeys. Fuel savings, maintenance costs and overall efficiencies were achieved once the rear end loaders had been added to the fleet. Liquid waste vacuum tankers for the collection of hazardous and non‐hazardous wastes were also added to the fleet.
    [Show full text]
  • Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)
    Thursday Volume 536 24 November 2011 No. 229 HOUSE OF COMMONS OFFICIAL REPORT PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) Thursday 24 November 2011 £5·00 © Parliamentary Copyright House of Commons 2011 This publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Parliamentary Click-Use Licence, available online through The National Archives website at www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/information-management/our-services/parliamentary-licence-information.htm Enquiries to The National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey TW9 4DU; e-mail: [email protected] 431 24 NOVEMBER 2011 432 Therefore, we will seek to improve them to get the best House of Commons possible outcome for taxpayers, consumers and farmers alike. Thursday 24 November 2011 Mr Denis MacShane (Rotherham) (Lab): The Secretary of State will recall that that great European, Socrates, The House met at half-past Ten o’clock said that a politician who does not know the price of a bushel of wheat should not be in the job. If we got rid of PRAYERS the CAP, we would have to have a BAP—a British agricultural policy. Knowing our farming community—a [MR SPEAKER in the Chair] landowning community—and its control of top Tories, I suggest that the BAP would be far more expensive BUSINESS BEFORE QUESTIONS than the CAP. NEW WRIT Mrs Spelman: I think we are speculating wildly about Ordered, the future of Europe. My job is to concentrate on That the Speaker do issue his Warrant to the Clerk of the getting an improvement in the reforms. It is important Crown to make out a new Writ for the electing of a Member to to appreciate that the underlying objective of the CAP serve in this present Parliament for the Borough constituency of is to provide good-quality food at a reasonable price.
    [Show full text]
  • Brierley Hill (2Nd Edition)
    HITCHMOUGH’S BLACK COUNTRY PUBS BRIERLEY HILL (INC. PENSNETT, QUARRY BANK, ROUND OAK) 2nd. Edition - © 2010 Tony Hitchmough. All Rights Reserved www.longpull.co.uk ABRAHAM DARBY Times Square Avenue, Merry Hill Centre, BRIERLEY HILL OWNERS J. D. Wetherspoon LICENSEES Odel Creehan (2005 – [2009] NOTES It opened on the 27th February 2005, at a cost of £1.2 M. [2010] 2007 ACADEMY Waterfront East, Merry Hill Centre, BRIERLEY HILL OWNERS Bass Taverns (from1995) M. & M. Leisure Ltd. [2008] LICENSEES Russell Jordan (1995 – [1996] Mark Pinches [2001] – [2003] manager NOTES It opened in 1995. It was a wine bar. [2007] Closed It reopened as the ROADHOUSE. [2008] 2007 2008 ALBION 17, (9), Albion Street, BRIERLEY HILL OWNERS Thomas Priest, Simms Lane, Netherton Atkinsons Brewery [c. 1897] J. F. C. Jackson Ltd. [c. 1930] Darby’s Brewery Ltd. (acquired on 4th May 1937) LICENSEES Thomas Dudley [1872] – 1873); Thomas Priest (1873 – 1877); William Brooks (1877 – 1878); James Hyde (1878 – [1881] Nehemiah Holds [ ] – 1888); William Benton (1888 – 1891); William Abraham Thompson (1891 – 1893); Richard Cox (1893 – 1897); Thomas Hill (1897 – 1898); William Bullock (1898 – 1899); Thomas Bradford (1899 – 1901); Richard Tranter (1901 – 1902); Perrin Mason (1902 – 1907); William Alfred Smith (1907); John Harry Meese (1907 – 1908); William Joseph Parkes (1908 – 1914); John Mason (1914 – 1927); Benjamin Asbury (1927 – 1933); Mary Ann Mason (1933 – 1934); Herbert John Holloway (1934 – 1936); William Henry Lilley (1936 – 1938); Richard Totney (1938 – [ ] William Henry Marshall [1940] Cyril Flello [ ] NOTES 9, Albion Street [1872], [1881], [1904], [1912] 17, Albion Street [1916] It had a beerhouse licence. Thomas Dudley, beer retailer, 9, Albion Street.
    [Show full text]
  • PENSNETT, SEDGLEY and TIPTON, 1945-C.1970 Rosalind
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by OpenGrey Repository “OLD HABITS PERSIST” CHANGE AND CONTINUITY IN BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNITIES: PENSNETT, SEDGLEY AND TIPTON, 1945-c.1970 Rosalind Watkiss Singleton, MA A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the University of Wolverhampton for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy May 2010 This work or any part thereof has not previously been presented in any form to the University or to any other body whether for the purposes of assessment, publication or for any other purpose. Save for any express acknowledgments, references and/or bibliographies cited in this work, I confirm that the intellectual content of the work is the result of my own efforts and of no other person. The right of Rosalind Watkiss to be identified as author of this work is asserted in accordance with ss. 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. At this date copyright is owned by the author. Signature………………………………………… Date……………………………………… Abstract This thesis examines continuity and change in the three Black Country localities of Pensnett, Tipton and Sedgley between 1945 and c1970. The dominant historiography of the period suggests that the prosperity of post-war British society, the safety-net of state welfare provision and unprecedented levels of consumer spending mostly eradicated the inter-war behaviour patterns of individuals, families and communities. Utilising the oral testimony of sixty residents from the three localities, and supplemented by a range of primary sources, the thesis demonstrates that growing affluence impacted only marginally upon the customary social mores of the lower- middle and working-class inhabitants.
    [Show full text]
  • Fotoindustria 2017 Exhibitions and Artists Biography
    FOTO/INDUSTRIA 2017 – Exhibitions and biographies THOMAS RUFF, GERMANY MACHINE & ENERGY CURATED BY URS STAHEL MAST. GALLERY Via Speranza, 42 Thomas Ruff is the prototype of the artist whose work requires a great deal of preliminary research. An image demiurge, he sees the camera as more than simply an optical mechanical recording device, but rather as a powerful image machine through which—depending on the motivations, the criteria, the selected recording system—he can transform the elements of reality into a new visual dimension. Ruff takes up different photographic genres: portraits, urban night scenes, images of the sky, landscapes, snapshots borrowed from press clippings, dream images, jpg depictions of catastrophes, photograms created in a virtual dark room. Ruff is an archivist and a photographer, a collector and a creator of raw data, which he pours out onto large-format panels. Philosopher Michael Stoeber uses the terms “body machines,” “machine bodies,” machines of desire, computer (machines), and sex machines to define the relationship between humans and machines; Ruff’s art is a machine that produces images and thoughts. Ruff is a processor of images, who incorporates and transforms the found, collected, or generated raw materials of a multi-layered reality and allows them to flow freely onto large framed surfaces—hybrids of “dreams and nightmares, reality and illusion, facts and secrets”—or, as in the photograms, generates entirely new, completely virtual images. The images in Ruff’s Machines form the core the exhibition at the MAST PhotoGallery. Presented with them are other series by Ruff, including Nights, Houses, Other Portraits, Jpgs, Photograms, and Negatives.
    [Show full text]
  • The Historical Metallurgy Society Ltd Acknowledges with Gratitude a Grant of £3,250 from the Awards for All England Joint Pot Programme
    Catalogue of the records of the Historical Metallurgy Society and papers of Charles R Blick and others. This catalogue was compiled by C J Williams (Files 1 – 458) Other entries were compiled by members of the HMS Archives & Collections Committee and other volunteers (Files 459 to end) Historical Metallurgy Society Catalogue originally issued 2005, this revision March 2020. The Historical Metallurgy Society Ltd acknowledges with gratitude a grant of £3,250 from the Awards for All England Joint Pot programme. This grant made the initial professional organisation of their archive materials possible, and allowed public access to the material for the first time. CONTENTS Page iv INTRODUCTION 277–285 Scotland HMG/HMS 286 Northern Ireland 1–7 Minutes: council meetings 8–16 Minutes: committee meetings Overseas 17 Branch records 287 Australia 18–25 AGM records 288 Brazil 26–50 Conference records 289 Egypt 51–74 Secretary’s correspondence, 290 Italy etc 291 Mexico 75–76 Financial records 292–293 Poland 77–78 Publications 294–297 Sweden 298–302 United States of America PAPERS OF CHARLES BLICK BRITISH STEEL 79–83 Metallurgy: general CORPORATION 84–114 Iron and steel: general 303–323 BSC: general 115–125 Iron and steel: notable men 126–133 Other metals: general BSC divisions and companies: 134–136 Guns and armour 324 Chemicals 137–139 Museums 325–326 Corby 140–155 Other societies 327–333 Distington 156–157 Railways 334 Midland Group 335–336 Redpath, Dorman Long Mining and metallurgical 337 Reinforcement sites – England: 338–345 Rotherham 158 Cheshire
    [Show full text]