{"id":47729,"date":"2025-01-26T03:49:43","date_gmt":"2025-01-26T03:49:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/entertainment\/art\/can-art-save-the-high-street\/"},"modified":"2025-01-26T03:49:43","modified_gmt":"2025-01-26T03:49:43","slug":"can-art-save-the-high-street","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=47729","title":{"rendered":"Can Art Save The High Street"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n<\/p>\n

\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\"can<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Can Art Save the High Street?<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Remember those bustling
\nSaturdays on the high street, the shared joy of finding a bargain, or the
\nanticipation of trying on a new outfit? Those bygone moments seem increasingly
\ndistant, replaced by boarded-up shops and the convenience of online clicks. But
\nis the decline of the high street inevitable and can art and creativity really save
\nit?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

This time I explore a
\ndifferent path for high streets around the world \u2013 one where art becomes the
\nvibrant paintbrush, reimagining the high street as a canvas for community,
\nexperience, and possibility.<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

This post marks a milestone \u2013
\nmy 400th blog! With artificial intelligence (AI) on the rise and people busier
\nthan ever, I wondered about the future of blogs and the direction I should take
\nwith this site. Some might see blogs as outdated, but AI can’t replicate humanity
\nwithout it appearing fake or stereotyped \u2013 nor can it convey the
\n“why” behind my art.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Blogs remain a powerful way to
\nconnect with a real audience and a way for artists to provide the narrative to
\ntheir work and the thinking behind it. That\u2019s something that is difficult to
\nconvey through a regular artist website, most are geared towards driving
\ntraffic to purchase routes and I think art, and artists deserve more than that,
\nbut maybe I\u2019m just old school. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

So, I’m embracing my humanity
\nand focusing on what AI can’t do. I’ll be diving deeper into my retro-inspired
\nwork, providing a narrative alongside the art that documents the what, when,
\nand why, rather than the previous 399 posts that have really focussed on sharing
\nknowledge and experience. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The art world constantly changes
\nbut it also stays the same, once you gain experience it becomes easier to
\nnavigate and by easy, I mean well, it will still be character building but
\nexperience will give you the skills to get you through. I\u2019ll still share
\nknowledge but it won\u2019t be the sole focus of this site, there are 399 posts that
\nsay what needs to be said that I\u2019ve written already!<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\"Maggie's<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Maggie’s Irish Pub by Mark Taylor<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Over the years, I’ve created
\nhundreds of pieces depicting life in the 70s, 80s, and 90s. While I’ve built a
\ncollector base with landscapes and abstracts I haven’t shared much about these
\n“retro” works, which were often commissioned. I\u2019ve painted icons and
\nmemories from the 80s since the 1980s, everything from early digital pre-Warhol
\nperiod work right the way through to cover art. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

From now on, expect a deeper
\ndive into my process behind the art. Ultimately, I want to create a visual
\nrecord of these three influential decades, a time of not just technological
\nrevolution, but also a period in time that witnessed a major shift in people\u2019s
\nattitudes towards everything from art to consumerism, even politics. I\u2019m also
\ngetting to that particular point in my art career that making a stand or making
\na point with my work is an itch I need to scratch. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"back<\/a><\/div>\n


<\/span><\/p>\n

This post introduces my latest
\nseries, exploring the changing face of the high street. Throughout this series I
\njuxtapose thriving businesses with those that have closed, reflecting the
\ndecline of these once-sacred spaces.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

It’s a reminder of what we’ve
\nlost and a look at the complex factors at play. The future of brick-and-mortar
\nstores is uncertain, with online giants like Amazon changing how we shop. We
\nmight even question if the high street’s heyday was already fading in the 80s!<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

This series is a starting
\npoint for a conversation \u2013 what will become of the high street?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The British high street, once
\na bustling centre of life and commerce, now stands at a crossroads. This story
\nechoes across the globe: what were once proud symbols of community and commerce
\nare now boarded up, or filled with replacements that don’t quite capture the
\nsame spirit.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In the UK especially, these
\nreplacements can be puzzling. Small towns with ageing populations might have
\nseven Turkish barber shops, charity shops (thrift stores in the US), American
\ncandy stores, and nail salons. Who needs that many barbers when there’s less
\nhair than customers?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Of course, this decline isn’t
\nuniversal. Thriving high streets still exist in some parts of Europe and the
\nUS. But wherever decay sets in, for social, economic, or political reasons, a
\nshadow falls over the community.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Here in the UK, the
\nindependent art supply store I relied on is gone. Now, a quick canvas for a
\ncommission requires online ordering or a long drive. This has a ripple effect \u2013
\nthe high street used to be vital for local businesses to connect with each other.
\nNow, it’s a waiting game of unreliable deliveries, a system that doesn’t care
\nif your art supplies arrive broken.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Look, I know I might sound
\nlike someone yelling at clouds, but I truly wish we could find something that
\nbrings communities together again.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The exact start of the high
\nstreets decline is hard to pinpoint. Some high streets thrived longer than
\nothers. But for Britain, I suspect the 1980s marked a turning point. The decay
\ncrept in slowly, cracks appeared that we just didn’t see at the time.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\"high<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
A High Street Heartbeat Fades by Mark Taylor<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Out of town shopping centres,
\nalthough popular in the early to mid-1970s, began to sprawl into new urban
\nareas. In the United Kingdom, new towns had been created to manage the
\npopulation overspill from surrounding areas, old minefields were converted into
\nhousing estates, development corporations sprang up, and Milton Keynes, a new
\ntown way north of London had concrete cows installed in a field and everyone
\nthought it was fun.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Despite being newly created
\nwith new people everywhere there was still a sense of old-small town community
\npresent, but this spirit hinged on having lots of new town benefits such as
\nvibrant high streets, enough local facilities and police that policed, doctors
\nthat doctored, and schools that didn\u2019t have to compete for students through a
\nleague table and that weren\u2019t falling down because they used the wrong type of
\nconcrete. I kid you not, that\u2019s what\u2019s happening with schools here in Blighty.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

New homes were built at pace,
\nsomething that rarely happens in the modern day. High streets flourished from
\nnew footfall and they really did become hubs for the community to gather. Out
\nof town shopping centres and malls were rapidly created, they offered a
\nconvenience and had everything in one place and they had exciting and exotic
\nbrands that could never be found in regular stores.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Malls, at least initially were
\nnever seen as an immediate threat to the high street. They were still bricks
\nand mortar, and it was unlikely that small independent retailers would want to
\ngo head to toe with the big players and they often sold very different things.
\nThere was space for both. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The supermarkets and grocery
\nstores were some of the first to transition completely to the out of town malls,
\nthey could carry much more stock and provide even more choice for customers in
\nthe bigger locations. I remember a couple of supermarkets moving out of town,
\nbut there were still smaller retailers who could fill the void, not everyone
\nwanted to visit the mall and not everyone could travel easily but when the
\nsupermarkets began to leave the high street it would be another chip in the
\nfabric.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

These out of town centres were
\nconvenient but there was a reliance on either using public transport or
\ntravelling by car, the traditional local high street still served a purpose
\nespecially as car ownership in the UK during the 70s was still relatively low. So
\nwhy do I say the 1980s had been pivotal in the decline of high streets at a
\ntime when high streets were still vibrant and booming?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Whenever I ask anyone this
\nquestion they undoubtedly say that the internet doomed the high street, I\u2019m not
\nsure that\u2019s entirely the case because we didn\u2019t have the internet back in the
\n80s, although there\u2019s little doubt that the internet would certainly accelerate
\n\u00a0<\/span>and seal the fate of the high streets
\ndecline in the future. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

I think it all started with a
\ncombination of things. A perfect storm of innovation and technology coming
\ntogether and the visionaries who embraced those early technologies and began to
\nwonder how life changing it could be in the next decade and beyond. Little did
\nthey know just how much of a leap they were about to make.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\"derelict<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Out of Gas by Mark Taylor<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Pre-web based systems were
\nundoubtedly another gateway to the future decline of the high street. They made
\nlittle to no real impact on local retail footfall at the time, but the seeds
\nhad been sown, maybe even inadvertently, I\u2019m not sure anyone in the 1980s would
\nhave believed that the future high street would be accessed through a keyboard.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Those pre-web technologies
\nsuch as bulletin boards (BBS) which sprang up in the early 1980s,\u00a0using platforms
\nlike the Boston Computer Exchange (1982) facilitated online classifieds and rudimentary
\nelectronic shopping. They\u00a0mainly focussed on used computers and
\ntech-related products, which were still very specialist and very niche on the
\nhigh street.\u00a0Transactions often involved phone calls or mail orders for
\npayment and delivery.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

France’s Minitel (1982) and
\nthe UK’s Prestel (1979) were videotex systems accessed through TVs and
\ndedicated terminals.\u00a0They offered online
\nbanking,\u00a0classifieds,\u00a0and limited online shopping through text-based
\ninterfaces and proprietary protocols.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Both of these technologies
\nwere niche, but the target audience for these systems were more likely to eventually
\nbecome the tech entrepreneurs that would take the seeds and push the technology
\neven further by creating emerging web based systems. Mainly in the guise of CompuServe
\nElectronic Mall (1985) <\/b>and Freenet (1986).<\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

CompuServe was one of the
\nfirst online shopping malls accessed through dial-up connections,\u00a0offering
\nproduct information and ordering from various vendors.\u00a0Payment often
\ninvolved pre-paid accounts or credit card orders over the phone. Encryption,
\nforget it, it wasn\u2019t unusual to cut out an order form from a magazine and send
\nall of your credit card details through the traditional postal services.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Freenet was an early
\npeer-to-peer network allowing users to share files and
\ninformation,\u00a0including software and digital art.\u00a0Though not
\ntechnically e-commerce,\u00a0it laid the groundwork for decentralized online
\ndistribution models. This would become pivotal in the years ahead and
\nsolidified the foundations for the internet we know today. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

There were other developments
\ntoo, Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)<\/b> was being used in the 1980s to
\nexchange purchase orders and invoices electronically and it is this that would
\nform the foundations for B2B e-commerce in later years. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

By this time, online banking
\nbegan to emerge and this allowed customers who had invested in these early
\ntechnologies to do some very simple online tasks such as checking balances and
\nin some instances they were even able to make rudimentary transfers, something
\nthat would later mature into the behemoths of banking systems that we see
\ntoday. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

There were still plenty of
\nlimitations and challenges that would stall the inevitable changes that were to
\ncome, dial-up internet was slow, internet connections were much less prevalent
\nthan they are today, and there were concerns around limited security especially
\nwhen it came to data security and online payment fraud, problems that would
\nexponentially grow over time as both the systems and the scammers matured into
\nmore complex beasts.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

These were barriers for
\nconsumers and whilst those consumers were buying into the shiny new home
\ncomputer and PC thing which was being heavily advertised, the public were less
\nwilling to engage with the online world because there was a cost barrier and to
\nbe honest, people were generally either playing video games or using
\nproductivity software. This was the golden age of Lotus 1-2-3, folks.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The majority of the mainstream
\nconsumer population had little to no idea of the online world and when they did
\ncatch a glimpse of it, that world was usually presented through clunky text
\nbased interfaces or depicted on glass screens in a control centre as the
\ncentral focus of an action film. Remember, this was still very much rooted in
\nthe days of early IBM, DOS, and very much pre-Microsoft Windows. There were no
\nuser friendly interfaces, the interaction was often limited to typing on a
\nkeyboard.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Overall, online commerce in
\nthe 1980s was nascent and far from mainstream. But these early experiments and
\ntechnological advancements laid the groundwork for the explosion of e-commerce
\nthat would happen in the following decades and I think that was the point that
\nthe high streets fate was finally signed, sealed, but still as yet to be
\ndelivered. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\"antique<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
High Street Treasures – Mark Taylor<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Television advertising in the
\n80s was on another level. In the decades since a lot has changed in the world
\nof TV advertising, its format, how ads would be targeted, the consumer
\nexperience and there are huge differences not only between 80s and modern day
\nproduction quality standards but also in the content that ads were able to display.
\n<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Advertising cigarettes was a
\nhuge source of ad-revenue in the 80s, I still remember the Marlboro ads, and in
\nthe UK, the John Player Special ads that were adorned on formula one racing
\ncars. Tobacco advertising was banned in the UK and other territories over the
\nfollowing years and TV advertising shifted away from the typical stereotypes
\nthat had been used in the earlier years, but it still had a way to go to get
\nwhere we are today. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In the 1980s, ads would
\ntypically run between 30 and 60 seconds, usually aired between scheduled
\nprogramming blocks and limited in number per hour. A 30-minute program might
\nhave had ads at the start, halfway through and again pre-the next program, hour
\nlong programs would generally see advertising every 15-minutes here in the UK,
\nin some countries ads were even more prominent. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

There were limited channels
\nand viewers had nowhere to hide. It wasn\u2019t until the mid to late 80s that video
\nrecorders became much more mainstream and allowed consumers to record TV and
\nfast forward through the ads. In short, advertisers and ad-executives had a
\ncaptive audience, but as an advertiser you had little to no idea who those
\npeople were.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The ad-men\/women of the 80s
\ncertainly had their challenges with this lack of trackability, but ads worked
\nperhaps because they were largely unregulated in the same way as they are
\ntoday. Content was genuinely, if not politically correctly, sticky. It
\nresonated because the messages were far less subtle than they often are today
\nand consumers were still largely discovering technology for the first time. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Catchy jingles, celebrity
\nendorsements, no influencers or con-fluencers as I like to call the majority of
\nthem (oh my I do sound old and grumpy), and while I can say that I didn\u2019t
\nalways agree with the portrayed stereotypes, advertisers were bold enough to
\npush humour in ways that make todays ads sterile enough to avoid any possible
\nlitigation. TV is rarely brave in the modern day.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Maybe because we also had
\nregional programming and entertaining TV that would be watched by millions of
\npeople in real time, I think I would be minded to say that those ads probably
\nworked better than the hyper-targeted, highly focus group led ads that we see
\ntoday, albeit some of those 80s ads would be best left in the 80s or completely
\nforgotten. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Economic Restructuring\u2026<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n

The 1980s also witnessed
\neconomic restructuring, leading to the decline of some traditional industries
\nand increased competition from overseas goods. This impacted local economies
\nand potentially reduced spending on non-essential items typically found on the
\nhigh street. Unemployment was significantly higher than it had been and there had
\nby then been a decline, particularly in rural England within industries that
\nhad for hundreds of years been the providers of a stable income for generations
\nof the same families. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Coal mines had been shut down,
\nthe steel industry was in decline, it was a decade of either decadence and
\nsuccess or complete despair depending on what industry you worked in. An
\ninequality that had existed before was being amplified across communities and
\nthis would eventually trickle into high streets up and down the country. Politics
\nplayed a hand too, but that\u2019s a complicated story for another time. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\"French<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
French Bread by Mark Taylor<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Beyond purely technological
\nfactors, the 1980s witnessed a shift in consumer preferences towards
\nconvenience, brand recognition, and value for money, which out-of-town shopping
\ncentres and early online retailers aimed to capitalise on. Advertising was
\nbecoming more powerful and the world was becoming exponentially smaller with
\nthe advent of mobile phones, early websites and a growing awareness about how
\nthe online world would provide the future of flying cars that we had been
\npromised in the 1950s and 60s. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

People were ready to embrace
\nchange and by the mid-80s, were also being encouraged to buy into the world of increasingly
\nmore affordable technology. Home computing saw its barriers to entry removed
\nwith the introduction of cheap 8-bit home microcomputers, and the rapid pace of
\ntechnical innovation began to get people excited for the future.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

I often wonder how many of
\nthose people, me included, figured that technology would eventually have such
\nan impact on everyone\u2019s lives. The target audience at the time were mostly
\nliving in the here and now, and many of them were wearing Swatch watches and
\ngaudy colours from United Colors of Benneton. Looking back, the 80s were very
\nmuch all about living in the now.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

It’s important to note that all
\nof these these factors intertwined, The convenience of out-of-town centres was
\npartly enabled by improved transportation infrastructure, itself a product of
\ntechnological advancement. The rise of TV advertising and direct marketing
\nrelied on technological developments in communication and changing consumer
\npreferences were likely influenced by factors like economic restructuring and
\nthe overall cultural shift towards mass consumption led by the brands and the
\nmarketing teams. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The 80s was the real
\nbirthplace for mass consumerism, even I bought into it when I got my first
\nFilofax which I carried around but didn\u2019t have either the responsibility or the
\nsocial life to fill in. One year later, that Filofax still had no entries, but
\nit was a free gift with a bottle of Drakkar Noir, an 80s aftershave that I
\nstill wear to this day.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

As I said earlier, it was a
\ncombination of things that scuppered our Saturday afternoons bumbling around
\nthe local shops. It was a perfect storm and a hive mind of innovation that
\nfinally sealed the high streets eventual fate, but there is little doubt, that while
\nthe fast pace of technological change in the 1980s wasn’t the sole culprit, it
\nwas undeniably a contributing factor in its decline.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Beyond the economic impact,
\nthe decline of the high street has woven itself into the fabric of social loss.
\nIndependent shops and businesses, still to a large extent where they still
\nexist are the lifeblood of many communities but where they have been forced to
\nclose, the closures also shuttered access to the personalised services and
\nunique products, and tactile buying experiences that they offered. Much of the
\nhigh street of the past was broadly, all about the experience and in part, the
\nhuman connections that could be made. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Retail was a by-product of
\nsocial interactions, as the decade matured consumerism began to reach fever
\npitch. You could literally rock up on a street corner and sell toilet tissue
\nfrom a suitcase and people would buy into it and then it all crashed in 87.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\"flower<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
The Florist by Mark Taylor<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

It’s not
\nall bad news for high streets, many communities are fighting back, championing
\nlocal businesses, hosting vibrant markets and many are really pushing the arts
\nand crafts movement. It\u2019s not unusual to see communities working with local
\nauthorities and landlords to transform vacant spaces into community hubs.
\nInnovative retailers are blending online and offline experiences, offering
\nclick-and-collect services and personalised in-store consultations, so what
\nabout the future?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

For those
\nof us who might be looking at the past through rose tinted glasses and holding
\nout for a return of the high street as it was, I think we have to face the
\ninevitable that we are unlikely to ever see that type of high street ever
\nagain. That\u2019s probably not such a bad thing, the high street has had a history
\nof change for hundreds of years.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

There\u2019s
\nalso a question as to whether High Streets are worth saving, I believe they
\nare, they remain critical to local economies and provide employment
\nopportunities without which economies would stagnate and decline even further. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

How we go
\nabout saving them is a bigger question, especially during times when finances
\nare stretched and you need more money to buy less.\u00a0 <\/span>High streets have become much more complex in
\nhow they\u2019re made up too. Multiple landlords, much more stringent regulation,
\nless footfall, in some cases perhaps because they\u2019re also much less accessible
\nthan before, and sprawling urban areas mean that high streets are further away
\nfrom where people live.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The high street\u2019s decline is a
\ncomplicated issue with no easy answers, but there are pockets of hope from
\ncentres that have been entirely reimagined, and where communities and planners
\nhave been thinking outside of the proverbial box. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The narrative of decline is
\ndifferent the world over. In Europe, many high streets have continued to
\nthrive, albeit in a reimagined way and mostly due to the strong social safety
\nnets and cultural significance of public spaces which afford some protection.
\nThe problem for most regular high streets is that they don\u2019t have easy access
\nto a Roman Coliseum to attract the crowds, most high streets are no longer the
\ndestination, they\u2019ve become much more passive and rely on passing trade.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In Asia, there is a very mixed
\nstory of booming economies in major centres leading to continued growth and
\ndevelopment, but there are also stories that mirror the plight of declining high
\nstreets elsewhere. In the US, some high streets and malls have been finding
\nsuccess in mixed-use developments combining entertainment, retail, offices and
\nhousing, bringing communities back into the areas that have previously been in
\ndecline.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Mixed use spaces that offer
\nthis kind of integration alongside experience driven retail with a community
\nfocus further highlights the need for traditional high street\u2019s to adapt. They
\ndemonstrate how high streets and public spaces can once again thrive, but it
\nrequires planning and finance and effort to make it happen.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Perhaps the answer is that the
\nhigh street has gone and its replacement could be born out of any public space.
\nDoes the high street need to be as linear as it once was with rows of streets
\nfilled with shops and restaurants, or could it be reimagined completely and be
\nplaced right on everyone\u2019s doorstep?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s a question that many
\npreviously declining areas have faced and answered, and they\u2019ve seen huge
\ntransformations not just within the local economies, but within the community
\ntoo with many also seeing dramatic reductions in crime rates. Art has played a
\nmassive role in many of the most successful projects and with fewer local
\nauthorities being in a position to continue funding arts programs and projects,
\nit might just be up to the art community to step up and help put some of these
\nwrongs to right.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n