In 2017, GRAS was invited by RIBA and Hull City Council to submit an expression of interest for the creation of an ambitious and bold temporary outdoor structure in Hull city centre. The resulting installation, launched in August 2017, was designed around four core principles: collaboration, purpose, response to context, and materiality.

The North Ship proposal celebrates Hull’s collective cultural identity, acknowledging its rich history as a major trading hub, fishing and whaling port, and industrial city. This project reflects on these layered histories at a pivotal moment for the city, while also envisioning a future shaped by cultural renewal in a post-industrial era.

Development of the proposal involved close collaboration with the artist collective ~in the fields, based on Scotland’s west coast. Their work focuses on natural phenomena and captures poetic moments within autonomous, cocoon-like systems. Drawing inspiration from archival materials, environmental themes, and ephemeral artifacts such as lost cinematic forms, their installations are modular in appearance, responsive to their surroundings, and frequently powered by solar energy.

Together, GRAS and ~in the fields crafted a structure that resonates with Hull’s heritage while projecting an imaginative vision for its cultural future.