Hulme Habitats

About

Hulme has become a byword for bold, sweeping architectural transformations, first seen in the modernist era’s extensive redevelopment of the Victorian 'slums' and then again in the 1990s. In her exhibition, Emma Coop meticulously redrafts maps by hand to decipher the complex history, with a particular emphasis on envisioning urban landscapes devoid of buildings, focusing instead on the verdant urban spaces.

The dramatic modernist overhaul of Hulme, followed by its notorious decline, is a story familiar to many in Manchester and beyond. Once home to one of Europe’s most expansive housing projects, marked by its ‘streets in the sky’ and the emblematic Crescents, it stood for just over twenty years. Yet, Emma Coop chooses not to dwell on the architectural shortcomings or the surge in crime. Instead, she explores an often-ignored aspect of Hulme’s identity: its public green spaces. She investigates whether a legacy of modernism continues to flourish, at least in part, within Hulme’s green enclaves.