From cattle market to campus: Temple Quarter’s histories Verified listing

Join us to celebrate our 150th anniversary and the opening of Temple Quarter Enterprise Campus with a series of inspiring events.

As the University of Bristol opens its new campus in Temple Quarter, this talk explores something of the long history of the site, in particular the ways in which the area has been a place of creativity.

Once a colour works producing printed and dyed floor cloths, the site has also been a cattle market and a sorting post office. But for a long time, it was also a vast, derelict location lying empty after the post office moved to Filton.

Occupied by street artists, this abandoned space was brought to life as a gallery of urban creativity. Having photographed the interior, and against the backdrop of a longer history, researchers from the Faculty of Arts, Law and Social Sciences examine the past, present and future of this incredible location to answer a bigger question about the role of art, place and community.

This is the second event of the Autumn Art Lectures 2026: Art, Place and Community.

Celebrating 150 years and the opening of TQEC
This event is part of a public programme of events on Saturday 10 October, to celebrate the University of Bristol’s 150th year and the opening of our new Temple Quarter Enterprise Campus. The Clifton campus and TQEC will be open throughout the day, with opportunities to explore, discover and celebrate with friends and family. This is a free event and everyone is welcome.

Venue Location: Bill Brown Forum, Sloane Robinson Building, Temple Quarter Enterprise Campus, Cattle Market Road, Bristol, BS1 6AZ

Click here to reserve your space