Plenty to see for young and old as venues put on displays

SUMMER is prime time for major exhibitions but it's not just our leading art venues such as the Laing in Newcastle and Baltic in Gateshead that are out to encourage visitors to explore their new season shows.

- Barbara Hodgson on the exhibitions that you may like to find time for this summer

Venues across the North East currently have some cracking displays on view and here we pick out just a handful of them to give an idea of what's on offer.

They include both free and ticketed exhibitions outside the city centre and also in County Durham, including one which will no doubt appeal to children too. And they range from paintings to pottery and historic treasures.

But of course we're not forgetting the biggies. The Laing Art Gallery has its With These Hands exhibition, while the programme at Baltic centre for contemporary art includes Ali Cherri's How I Am Monument, inspired by archaeological artefacts and the natural world. Remember Somewhere - a joint exhibition by local twins Laura and Rachel Lancaster - is also currently on show at the Gateshead gallery.

Newcastle Airport at 90

As the city airport deals with an endless flow of travellers jetting off on their summer holiday, it is also offering a journey back to the past with a new exhibition in celebration of its turning 90. This opened in the terminal at the end of June, the first of several exhibitions across the North East to mark the big birthday year.

The award-winning Newcastle International Airport opened in 1935 with just a handful of buildings, one hangar and a strip of grass as first flights got under way on an eight-seater aircraft to and from London. The exhibition travels back in time with a look at key moments in its history, such as its Second World War role in training pilots and the 1977 visit by American president Jimmy Carter while artefacts on display include vintage cabin crew uniforms, pieces of the runway and even the handprints of Ant and Dec on a commemorative plaque marking the 2004 terminal extension.