TO celebrate the 50th anniversary of the creation of Peterlee's Apollo Pavilion, Berlin-based collective of artists and architects Mader Wiermann will light up the structure with an installation that will reflect its Brutalist architecture.

The installation takes place over two nights - tonight, Friday March 22 and Saturday March 23 - from 6pm until 9.30pm.

Commissioned by Durham County Council, in partnership with Artichoke, the company behind Durham’s Lumiere Festival, the installation launches a
year-long programme of community activity and engagement celebrating the anniversary of the Apollo Pavilion.

The structure, on the town’s Sunny Blunts estate, was the brainchild of the Peterlee Development Corporation and designed by the artist Victor Pasmore.

An example of 1960s public art, the Pavilion, which spans a small man-made lake, is constructed of concrete, with its only decoration being two painted murals.

As part of the work Artichoke will be doing following the installation, there will be an education and training programme for local 16 to19 year olds, encouraging them to develop career skills in digital and video art and production.

This will be followed by a 50th birthday party in July, the unveiling of an art installation in September and a landscape art project for secondary and higher education students.

The celebrations form part of the Year of Culture, #Durham19, a programme of events, festivals, anniversaries and openings taking place in the county during 2019.