The Angel of the North is 20 today

If you’ve ever driven north on the A1 or caught an East Coast main line train you’d find it hard to miss the Angel of the North high on a hilltop in Gateshead. Today we’re celebrating the 20th anniversary of its installation.

It is arguably Britain’s most famous piece of public modern art, and despite the initial controversy and local opposition, Antony Gormley’s Angel of the North was erected on 15 February 1998 and quickly become the most instantly recognisable landmark in the North East.

The Arts Council supported the Angel of the North with funding of £584,000 from the National Lottery which accounted for over 70 per cent of the total cost of the Angel. Other funders included Gateshead Council, the European Regional Development Fund, Northern Arts and private sponsorship.

The Angel of the North is a great example of how public art can help people see differently the places where they live and be proud of them and I’m sure that it will be an iconic attraction for visitors for many years to come.

- Jane Tarr, Director North, Arts Council England

Designed by internationally renowned sculptor Antony Gormley, who used a plaster cast of his own body as the basis for the piece, the Angel of the North was built on the site of the pithead baths of a former colliery. Its size - 20m high with a 54m wingspan - and its location means the Angel of the North is the UK’s most-viewed work of art, seen by an estimated 90,000 travellers every day. 

Jane Tarr, Director North, Arts Council England said:

“I’m delighted to join in the celebrations around the 20th anniversary of the Angel of the North which we supported through National Lottery funding. It is such an important part of the region’s cultural history and was at the forefront of the culture-led regeneration of Tyneside, led by Gateshead Council, which was followed by the redevelopment of Gateshead Quays and the building of Baltic, the Sage and the Millennium Bridge.”

“The Angel of the North is a great example of how public art can help people see differently the places where they live and be proud of them and I’m sure that it will be an iconic attraction for visitors for many years to come.”

The 20th anniversary marks the start of a series of Angel-themed celebrations including:

• an exhibition of archive photographs of the construction of the Angel of the North at St Mary’s Heritage Centre
• Angel Adventures, in which every primary school in Gateshead receives a knitted angel so that pupils can take it on an adventure and share their story with their school
• A series of art workshops, Angel-themed rhyme times for under-5s, animation and clay angel workshops, Culture Camps and other events in schools and libraries across the borough

Find out how to join in here.