Image courtesy of English Heritage

This is an open call for artists living and/or working in the North-East, North West, Yorkshire and Humber – with a deadline of October 13th 2025. 

Prudhoe Castle in Northumberland is an important heritage/architectural feature of the Tyne valley; its towering Keep a dominant presence in an urban landscape. The Castle is a prominent feature of   the town and this project intends to bring a fresh visual signposting to it, temporarily replacing the English Heritage flag (seen in the image above) and replacing it with a vibrant, contemporary one over December 2025/January 2026 with the potential for it to be used in the future. The flag will draw attention to this fabulous medieval English Castle and its architectural/heritage importance within the town.

WHO IS LEADING THE PROJECT
This arts/design project is led by a group of volunteers from 4 important heritage sites located in the north-east of England; Hadrian’s Wall, Ushaw Historic House, Chapels and Gardens, Belsay Hall Castle and Gardens and Durham Cathedral. The group have named themselves Contemporary Art Volunteer Ambassadors (CAVA’s).

Funded by English Heritage Community Connections Fund and steered by Arts&Heritage the Flying the (new) flag project invites artists/designers to re-design a new flag for Prudhoe Castle in Northumberland. The flag will be flown over the Winter period 2025 (15 December 2025 – 6 January 2026) and act as a visual beacon for this unique historic site, reminding residents (and visitors) of this important site that they have on their doorstep.

CALL OUT TO ARTISTS LIVING AND/OR WORKING IN THE NORTH OF ENGLAND
We are inviting artists from the North of England (North East, North West, Yorkshire and Humber regions) to respond to this brief, re-designing a new contemporary flag for English Heritage that will be flown at Prudhoe Castle in Northumberland from 15 December 2025 to 6th January 2026, with the potential for it to be used at other times in the year. The design will also appear as a leading digital work on the Arts&Heritage website as their Winter Commission.

DETAILS REGARDING THE NEW FLAG
Due to the Government’s Flag Guidelines, the new flag for Prudhoe Castle will need to incorporate, in some way, the English Heritage logo which you can see on their website for reference. The logo must be positioned centrally within the design, however we urge artist/designers to be as creative as possible when incorporating the English Heritage logo.

The flag will be printed on standard flag material and printed by the English Heritage approved flag company. English Heritage will provide the template for their logo to the artist/designer once they have been selected which can then be used as the foundation upon which the new design is developed. The colour of the English Heritage logo can be changed, and its size altered, but it must be positioned centrally within the new design. The flag dimension is 1.6 metres x 1 metres.

The design will be sent to the approved flag company (as a digital file) once the design has been signed off by the CAVA group and by English Heritage.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION – PRUDHOE CASTLE
Prudhoe Castle is a ruined medieval Norman fortress located in Northumberland, England, that has been continuously occupied for over nine centuries. The castle sits on a south ridge overlooking the River Tyne and was strategically important for guarding a key river crossing.

It presents a romantic, distinct silhouette that can be viewed from within the town, from nearby roads and from the railway that passes nearby.

It is notable for its well-preserved walls and for being the only Northumberland castle to have successfully withstood a Scottish siege by King William the Lion of Scotland in the 1170s. The initial structure was timber followed by a stone castle with a keep and gatehouse constructed in the 12th century, by the Norman Umfraville family after the 1066 conquest. The castle later passed to the influential Percy family, the Earls of Northumberland, in the late 14th century. While Alnwick Castle was their primary seat, the Percy’s restored and adapted Prudhoe over the years. A refined Georgian-era manor house was built within the castle walls in the early 19th century, a domestic environment secretly nestling inside the historic battlements and providing a stark contrast.

More information about the castle can be found on the local history website, which states that:

“In the early 1930’s, Mrs Elsie McIver went to the castle as resident cook to Captain Clark and his mother. The castle was rented to a succession of officers from the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers, who were sub-tenants of Colonel Nielson who in turn rented it from the Duke. The castle ceased to be occupied in 1963 but Mrs McIver’s husband, Jack, looked after the gardens while it was in the charge of the Ministry of Works and was closed to the public”.

Surrounding the formidable castle battlements is a gentle, circular landscaped garden called the Outer Ward Walk, open to visitors all the year round. The grounds offer a tranquil landscape to explore, including a picturesque mill pond and grassed/flowered walkways.

Managed by English Heritage and open to the public on designated days, Prudhoe Castle presents a fascinating blend of eras. Visitors can walk through the imposing barbican, imagine the castle’s rich history through interactive displays in the manor house, and stroll along the outer ward. They can enjoy views of the surrounding countryside and the River Tyne. The site’s distinct mix of formidable medieval defence and later residential elegance makes it a compelling destination for both history enthusiasts and nature lovers.

BUDGET
We have a budget of £2000.00 from the English Heritage Community Connections Fund for the artist/designer to research the history of Prudhoe Castle, design a new flag and oversee the manufacture of it. The costs of manufacture are included in this fee and are estimated at around about £75.00 but we can give more accurate costs at interview. NB The fee is inclusive of VAT.

TIMELINE
The timeline for this project is tight as the flag needs to be flying at Prudhoe Castle between December 15th to January 6th 2026. Manufacture of the flag is expected to take approximately 2 weeks from the approved flag company receiving the digital file, ready to print onto flag material.

DEADLINE FOR THE RECEIVING OF RESPONSES: OCTOBER 13TH 2025
INTERVIEW (ONLINE): OCTOBER 30TH 2025
ARTIST UNDER CONTRACT: NOVEMBER 3RD 2025
DESIGN OF FLAG: NOVEMBER – DECEMBER 2025
SIGN OFF DESIGN BY EH AND CAVA: DECEMBER 3RD 2025
MANUFACTURE OF FLAG: FROM THEN ON
FLYING THE FLAG: DECEMBER 15TH – JANUARY 6TH

WHAT TO DO NEXT IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN THIS PROJECT

If you are interested in designing a new flag that will be flown on this prominent and important Northumberland heritage site, we ask you to send us:

• Your name, contact details and website address (if you have one)
• A short paragraph about your practice (up to 250 words)
• Why designing a new flag for Prudhoe Castle interests you (up to 250 words)
• Up to 8 images of your work

Please send all of the above as one document / PDF when applying.
NB You do not have to use the maximum of 250 words

HOW WE WILL SELECT THE ARTIST
The CAVA group of 7 heritage volunteers together with contemporary art curator Judith King will consider your response. From your details, up to 3 artist/designers will be interviewed (virtually). The interview date will be 30 October 2025 in the morning. The selected artist will be under contract by 3 November 2025.

DEADLINE
Please email all responses to Arts&Heritage at info@artsandheritage.org.uk by 5pm on Monday 13 October 2025.

We hope that this project will allow the volunteers who have committed themselves enthusiastically to continuing their foray into the contemporary art world to see how artists can change the manner in which we regard historical narratives.

Good luck with your response, we hope you find the challenge of making a new flag for
Prudhoe Castle interesting…

Please send any enquiries about this new flag commission to: Judithgking2@icloud.com