We are pleased to present the Annual Student-Led Conference on the theme of GRASS ROUTES: Navigating Intangible Heritage. The event takes place on Thursday, 30 April 2026, from 10.00 am in The Northern School of Art's MA Studios. The conference explores how communities and identities are preserved through intangible heritage practices. Laurajane Smith, in Uses of Heritage (2006), defines intangible heritage as ‘practices, rituals, and ways of doing things’.​ The GRASS ROUTES conference programme features papers, presentations, and workshops that explore the theme in relation to local arts and cultural ecologies across Teesside.

 

We are delighted to welcome two keynote speakers: Bobby Benjamin and Richard Allaway. For the morning session, Teesside-based artist, curator and writer, and director of Pineapple Black Contemporary Art Space, Spaghetti Northern, Picasso Baby and House of Blah Blah, Bobby Benjamin shares his journey as a curator and his vision in developing independent artist-led spaces across Middlesbrough. On the afternoon, we welcome the second keynote speaker, Richard Allaway, artist, lecturer, and researcher, whose practice focuses on the language and networks of soil, visually represented through experimental photographic practice. Richard will give a presentation through his practice-based research and a technical demonstration of an earth battery using soil from the conference site.

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Postgraduate students from The Northern School of Art, Isaac Elgey, Ell Hockney and Ellie Shelton will also present their research projects. 

 

We look forward to welcoming you and we hope you enjoy the conference.

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