Opening up with a big noise, Unit 41, the new venture by respected art outfit Industrial Coast, is already making waves in the local art scene. Damian Robinson caught up with Unit 41 representative Steve Kirby to find out more about Unit 41 and its upcoming roster.
Congratulations on Unit 41 – it’s a fantastic venture. Could you tell us how Unit 41 came about and the history of Industrial Coast?
Thank you. Industrial Coast is into its seventh year as a label, and A Monday Night in Middlesbrough is now in its third year. Unit 41 is a progression of those two ‘operations’ and has been made possible with the support of Creative Factory Middlesbrough, an organisation that provides space for creative practices in the town.
And in terms of the venue’s ambition and purpose, what is the desire for Unit 41 and its wider plans in supporting various art projects?
Its primary function is as an exhibition space, but we are looking to make Unit 41 available for other uses, such as gigs, one-off art performances, ‘Socials’, and film screenings.
The first exhibition for Unit 41, with Rachel Deakin, got some fantastic reviews. Why was it important to you to open with A Monday Night in Middlesbrough?
I see Unit 41 as an extension of other arms of Industrial Coast. A Monday Night in Middlesbrough was always going to be exhibition one! Rachel is an amazing talent who also bought into the whole idea of what we were trying to achieve from day one. The exhibition truly captured the essence and spirit of that first year.
And then with the Benefits album launch, as well as hosting some of Mary Anne Hobbs’s events, Unit 41 seems keen to establish itself as a multi-purpose artistic venue. How are you finding managing a venue with different purposes and ventures?
Running a venue is not easy! It’s been an eye-opener but I’ve got a great support network which is helping me as I learn on the job. Creative Factory are great and their help is invaluable. I think it’s important to be multi-purpose in order to raise the profile of the space and also to demonstrate we can make it a viable long-term proposition.
In terms of future exhibitions and ventures, what’s next? What do you hope to achieve? And what can we expect?
We are pretty much booked up throughout 2025, which is excellent. Coping by Richie Culver has just concluded, and from mid-March to mid-April, we’ll be presenting ‘Often Seen but Overlooked’, which focuses on the work of a number of Teesside artists and is curated by Cal Dyer. Future exhibitions include ‘Big Destruction Rumble’, which is centred around Extreme Rules Japanese Wrestling (art by Osaka-based Adam Jennings), a presentation of artwork by US Harsh Noise label Deathbed Tapes, and work by Zurkas Tepla, a multi-disciplinary artist from Moscow, now based in Liverpool. I’m very excited about the programme of events coming up. When you tie this in with A Monday Night in Middlesbrough ’25 – which includes JK Flesh, The Rita, and Demdike Stare – it’s going to be a big year for us.
To find out more about Unit 41, head to instagram.com/industrialcoast.
