a wonderful new film by Simon Walker featuring young people who share their individual experiences of living on the Castle Vale estate. The film is now on show at the Community Gallery, Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery, as part of our 'Me, You & Everything Else' exhibition.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

We have exciting news!  Me, You and Everything Else has been selected to become a major exhibition at the Community Gallery located within the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery in the city centre. 

Over the last month Brendan, Geoff, Claire and Sandra have been working alongside the Gallery to plan the exhibition. They have been busy choosing some of the strongest images and quotes from the project, and getting everything ready for printing.

The exhibition runs from 17th November 2011 until 15th April 2012 and the private view is on Thursday 27th November 2011. Details are on the above invite - please do come along and join what promises to be very exciting event!  

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Phoenix Court: Thursday 3st March - Sunday 5th June 2011
Castle Vale Performing Arts College: Monday 6th June - Friday 22nd July 2011
The Sanctuary: Saturday 23rd July - Wednesday August 31st 2011

Thanks to everyone who has participated in the project and put in such a lot of hard work.

For further information and updates visit: www.activearts.wordpress.com

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

You can find out more about the arts awards scheme at this web site: ARTS AWARDS

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

About the Visit to the Public
Looking at the pictures from the Martin Parr exhibition in West Bromwich, these are some words we thought of...

- Expansive and random. There’s loads of stuff going on.

- Pictures of lots of of pictures of people doing random things.

- Strange... it’s different to where we live. There’s more community activities it seems.

- It looks a bit trampy round here.

- And rough.

- That’s harsh!

- I mean, it’s really run down, but there’s a lot going on in the photos. Things that you don’t see if you walk around. Lots of activities though.

- One way to describe it is... surprising. If when you go round it’s like a normal everyday area, and then here’s this extraordinary building and these pictures.

One of the older used to work in the area. He told us: You should have been here 40 years ago. It was rough then, with all the factories and iron foundries. You could taste the metal in the air. It look done up now, compared to then.

About photography
In this project I have enjoyed a lot of things like the Steve McCurry exhibition and the pictures that we did that were influenced by him. I also enjoyed the trip to the Public because it was a good way to interact with the older people and I enjoyed what was inside the building. I found it all very interesting and fun!  - Selina

In this project I enjoyed going around Castle Vale and capturing pictures of the estate. I liked taking photos as I enjoy photography. However, I don’t like thinking about what photos I need to take, as I prefer photography such as fashion photography - Jodi

I like to go out with my mates and chat with them. I also like horror films and action films, like Alien Vs Predator. I enjoyed researching the artists and I liked walking round the Vale and taking pictures. I also like going on the computer and manipulating the images - James

I like photography because you can take two pictures and merge them together to create a whole new photo - Jessica

I enjoyed researching the styles of artists and photography and creating our own designs in the style of that artist - Jake

I enjoyed the Steve McCurry exhibition and the Mcdonalds...hmm.. Mcdonalds. I enjoyed the trip to the Public gallery because its insides had amazing designs - Nick

I love photography because you can take a picture of something from all different angles that are different from how you would look at them in normal everyday life. I also like the way objects that aren’t normally seen together can be put together to create a whole new picture - Abbie

About elders
I haven’t got many older people I know. Some of the older people are scared of young people. Not all. Some are just scared to go to the shops on the Vale cos of the older kids. I think they have good reason to worry.

Respect is important. Manners. Don’t treat them in a different way cos they’re old. Treat them like normal people. Treat them like you’d treat your Mom, if that makes sense.

With older people, they’ve grown up using manners and giving respect to people, so they give it back to other people.

The older people I know are my Nan and Grandad and people like the next door neighbours.

They treat me normally cos I have a lot of respect for older people, so they’re more likely to talk to me. When people don’t have respect for them they feel intimidated by the younger people. Respect is talking to people properly, talking to them with manners and stuff. I don’t really know how to explain it, but its something you should treat all people like. If you go up to the top shops, there’s a lot of people who hang round and people are intimidated to go up there of a night, because of the way people act.

Some young people are not very nice to older people. My Grandad’s garage got graffitied and they throw bottles and stuff – and that was only the kids who go to primary school.

My Mom’s forty-something, my Grandad’s eighty something. I don’t think older people are scared, they just think different things. I think some younger kids are too violent – it’s ‘death to everything’. They say rockers and chavs are different, but I realise one similarity they have is they like to beat people up and be mean.

My Uncle... I find him really awesome. I think he’s into real heavy metal stuff like Black Sabbath.

I think young people get stereotyped. Older people worry about going out and being mugged. Sometimes it happens, like in really bad areas full of chavs.

They say it was safer I ntheir day, and worry about the stuff they see on the news all the time, about crimes and stuff.

Some older people can be a little crazy, going on about back in the day when I was in the war. They can talk randomly and go on and on. And on and on. I hate the ignorant ones. They’re annoying if you’re out shopping and they just barge into you. They expect you to respect the old, but they don’t respect you.

I don’t feel ignored by older people. I think they take a lot of interest in their Grandchildren.

I think older people think young people are all on drugs. I think older people would respect younger people, but the young won’t give any respect back

Respect means: being kind and polite, being treated in the same way, being kind to what people want or don’t want.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Chris is very much part of the wider community of Phoenix Court, contributing to the Family Ablum project and posting some of his stunning images taken around Castle Vale to our online blog. Chris is a very keen photographer and an all-round enthusiast so we asked him to share some more of his striking images and talk about some of the many aspects of his life. 

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Maxine is the manager at Phoenix Court. She took a few photographs for our blog durring one of her day's at work. She also shared with us some of her perspectives on life in the centre.

My job title is Scheme Manager, and I started working here 6 years ago, on St Valentines Day in fact! There is so much to this job it took me over 2 years to learn it all. Because it is Extra Care - we have social services onsite, and we have a kitchen - soon to be 7 days a week, 365 days a year. I also deal with contractors a lot, with a lot of help from Yasmin, which is great.  The home care team always come to me, a lot of people don't have doctors so I am the one that calls the doctors or the nurses. 

I do have a challenging job, no 2 days are the same. That is why I love it, I just love it. I enjoy working with people. I especially like working with older people. I treat them all like my own family member.  It is challenging, and the fact that some residents get ill and are sometimes near death is hard, but you learn to live with it, and accept it. 

I have also done a lot of training around dementia and Alzheimer's and I defend them to the hilt because you don’t know what is going to happen to you - there for the grace of god go I. 

My own life is challenging, but very different to the challenges that I face here. In a way I come here takes my mind off all the other things that are going on. 

The first couple of images are my colleagues Bea and Yasmin.

See the full gallery on Posterous

More contractors, fixing the gas - it was nice of them to let me take this one. 

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

I am 65 this year, and retiring soon. I was brought up on Varner Road in Highgate, Birmingham, and now lived in Castle Vale since 1969. When I came to work in Castle Vale I though ‘oh no, not Castle Vale!’ it had such a reputation then. But now I think the Vale is great, people put it down, but it is a real community, people are very friendly. 

So this is me and my twin sisters - Anne on the left, Judith in the middle, and me here on the right. We had to have that pram custom made! We were born in '46, just after the war. When us triplets were born my mum had already had 8 children then. And she still had another one afterwards as well!  
We get on well, very well indeed. We have real feelings for one another. We have always lived a couple of miles from one another. 

This is my brother's wedding. My dad Benjamin, at the back (second on the left), my mother Mini Louise, my brother Raymond, and his wife Annette. Sadly she has Alzheimer's now, she is such a lovely woman. This was taken on the 25th of June 1965! At the reception I was bored and wanted to go fishing, but I stayed on and that afternoon I met my wife-to-be Margaret - and we just clicked straight away. 

This is me and my wife - well now my ex-wife Margaret! It’s a happy picture - we had a good life, a good marriage and we had two beautiful children. Good memories, and good times. What happened has happened, its all part of life. In this picture is Sharon, she will be forty this year!  

The glass here are very Hank Marvin.. 

This is the youngest picture I have of me, with daughter Sharon and Elaine. Well we used to go to Brean Sands - we used to hire a caravan there. Many happy years there, and the kids loved it!

This is Sharon, yes, a schoolteacher. I am proud of both my daughters. That is my first grandchild Emily, and my nephew Sean, he has grown up now and served in Iraq a couple of terms. And that’s Paul. 

This is my twin sisters again, Anne on the left, and Judith on the right. 

Well, now I am retiring I am bit concerned. I am not worried, but when your retire you think ‘oh, you are retiring, you must be really old’. But I don’t feel old, I still feel like a 20 year old, I still play up! I am just not as quick on my legs as I were! (laughs).  I have a few things lined up for when I retire, I like messing on cars. I am quite happy in life, I have a new partner in life, quite a bit younger than me, and that is bonus in my case - I think myself very lucky to have her. 

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

We gave Irene and Ron a camera to take a few photographs of their life. Here is a small selection, together wilth some comments they made after looking back at them. 

Irene: this is Nellie and Val playing cards. We enjoy to come here (to Phoenix Court), we meet friends and it gives us company. It gets Ron out of the house. The meals are good as well! 
When it is warm weather, we do get out to Sutton shops, and also on sunday, we go to church - St Cuthbert’s. It’s not a religion, football is a religion. I am a Christian. 

Most of the time we watch the TV, I love the soaps, but Ron like the news more. East Enders, Coronation Street. If we did not have a tv I dont know what we would do, probably go to sleep (laughs). 

 Ron: I only have the use of one arm since my stroke when I was 48. I like to come here, it make me feel safe, and like to be with others. 

Irene: Why does Ron laugh so much? Because he has go me hasn’t he? (smiles) 
Val: Well he has got Irene to wait on him hand and foot hasn’t he? - typical man.  (laughs)

Irene: This is Matthew. He 38 this year coming. He has always lived and home, and now, well he wants a girlfriend. He has got his tv and his music. But he is a bit lonely and needs a friend really. I am a bit worried for him, you know, if anything happens to us. 

 Irene: The dolphin clock in the background was a present from Val. I like dolphins, but I prefer teddies and doggies. These teddy were also a present from Val.  We are pretty good friends. 

Val: I can’t stand the sight of her really! (laughs). No, we do get on - we just click and we like the arts and crafts. 

 Irene: This is claire’s children, she has 10 children, and now she has her own grandchildren. 

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

We asked Maureen to take some pictures of her life. Over the last couple of weeks she took some photos of life at the Phoenix Day Care Centre that she attends two or three times a week. Here she talks about some of her favourite pictures, together with Nancy and Barbara. 

Maureen: Oh, cuddle up! This is Barbara and Tom last Thursday at the Day Care Centre. I come here - well it gets you out of the house, and its nice to meet nice people. Sometimes they get on your nerves (looks at Nancy and laughs).

Nancy: It's fine to come here, it’s a nice to come here sometimes. It gone a bit quiet lately, since Christmas.  I was not going to be coming this week but my son said to me this morning at half past six, ‘you've got to give yourself a chance so go’. What the use of coming here, looking at that side all the time falling asleep (points to the elders on the other side of the room). It’s too quiet lately. I still have got a bit of a need for an active life. 

Maureen: In this picture - well we were having entertainment. I cant remember what it was.  It can get a bit boring sitting around, we do like to be doing things. But coming here, we pull each other about. What does that mean? Well not being nasty, but joking about. I joke about with my family too. 

Nancy: Joking, it passes the time. But you cant do it with everyone, not everyone can take a joke. You have to be careful. 

Barbara: Well, its company isn't it? I live by myself, I am used to it by now. If this place did not exist, well you would be on your own all the time, it would be boring.  Loneliness is one of the biggest killers in old age. 

Maureen: This is Rose and Joy dancing last week. It was really nice last week, the music - not over the top.  And this is the music. They were good, they really were - Dave and Bernie. It was pleasant, nice to listen to. They are like Jim Reeves, nice to listen to. I like Queen, Freddie Mercury in fact - I have all his videos. He could do anything, you name it - opera, anything. 

Nancy: My favourite is Bob Marley and Elvis Presley. I have all of Elvis’s records, long playing - I bought his records when they first came out. I did fancy him, but he is dead now and not much good to me dead! (laughs). 

Maureen: Ah, this is Keith (right) and Andrew (left). He used to be a volunteer Keith, working in the kitchen. He was such a lovely man. He has deserted us now, He has gone to learn more about Alzheimers. There was nothing this man wouldn't do for you. 

Nancy: He would do anything for anybody. He treated us all the same.  I love this picture, it’s lovely. A lovely man. 

Maureen: This is Rose - she’s dancing. I like this picture - it's really natural. 

Barbara: Someone told her she could sing, and ever since then, at every opportunity she sings. Sometimes she’s alright and sometimes she just shouts instead of singing. Sometimes I ask her to stop, but she really doesn't like that! Oh no! 

Maureen: This is Percy, Nancy ‘special’ friend (laughs)

Barbara: ‘Percy, the love of my life’ - Nancy’s that it (laughs) 

Maureen: He is a really nice man. 

Maureen: Talking to you, well it’s nice for someone to listen, like you. Lets put it this way - its nice to chat to someone who is intelligent!

Nancy: It’s different, and very relaxing. It passes the time away. More than that, it’s interesting. 

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

I am 72 in April, and was born in Birmingham. Of my family there are just 3 sisters left now. All of my 3 brothers have passed away.  I keep myself to myself, I like to read and watch my TV. I say hello to different ones you know. But, I am ok. 
To be honest I did not think i would get this far, I always imagined I would be like me mum who died at 63.  So really each day is a blessing that I am still here.  

Well here, I am about 11 here, it’s about 1950. That’s me at the back. This is in Wales, in Talybont. We stayed in a caravan in Talybont, North Wales. It was a caravan on a farm - you did not have proper caravan parks in those days. They were good times - a happy childhood. I can’t fault it, we always had a good time. We didn’t have nothing, but our mum always worked and so we never went without either.  This is my mum Florence and my sister Betty. My bathing suit was a mustardy, horribly yellow. My mum’s dress had a beautiful turquoise pattern on it. 

Thats me and me dad, John. I remember it being taken. I was about 14 there. This was took on the river Severn, in Worcester. We fished on the river behind this big pub, and stayed in a caravan. The caravans in those days - you had nothing - no showers or toilets like today (laughs). My dad was a good man, a good father. He worked on the council, painter and decorator. Well my mum had 2 jobs, home help and at the school as well. 

I can still remember having this picture taken, it was at Jeromes in Birmingham. Everybody went to Jerome’s - it was the only way have a good picture taken. I have a cream, like a camel coloured coat on, and lemon coloured sweater under that. 
I look at this picture and think ‘I can’t believe that was me’ when I look in the mirror now! 
When I was a baby I was having my picture taken at Jeromes - and a Canadian soldier was there and said to my mum, ‘I’ve got a name for her, I am going to call her cough drop eyes!’ This was ‘cos I have such big brown eyes, and, you know, the name stuck. 
It’s quite a battered picture, my husband carried it around for years! 

This my husband John. We met... well I used be a window dresser and he used to come in for his lunch. Well I never used to bother with boys, I used to go the cinema until I was 17 with my mum. And on my 18th birthday, I said to my friend ‘give this to this chap down there and ask him to meet me outside' - and he was there, waiting outside. I was 18 and he was 26. 
Him and his dogs - inseparable. Here, well I didn't like them climbing on me furniture you see but I had no choice (laughs). As I say, he’d send me and my sons away on holiday but he would stay at home with his dogs, and do some decorating and so on. Happy times, oh yes. John died in 1993. He was such a good man, thats why I have never bothered now. I could never find anybody like him. I am still raw about after all these years. 

Thats my eldest son Gary. He is a grandfather now - his two daughters have got children. His son Kieran here is 8 now. All my lads are good lads. This lad - he is more like my husband, he likes the construction and the outdoors. 

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Here's some screengrabs of the Vale mail. Click on them to view larger.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Wishing everyone in Castle Vale

- especially those people who have taken part in the ‘Me, you & everything else’ photography project –

a very MERRY CHRISTMAS & A HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Looking forward to seeing you again in the new year to work towards making our exhibition.

Keep warm!

Sally

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Laurna was very happy for us to take some photographs of her. She did wish she had dressed up for the occasion so maybe we can do another session for her later in the New Year. 

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

I was born in 1926 - I am 84! I can’t remember where I grew up, but oh yes I am a Brummie. I have been in quite a few areas as dad had to move around quite a lot with work.

Having my mum and dad together - Bert and Annie. Well, they were golden to me, gave me everything I wanted, even if the money - the jobs - wasn't there like for them. As soon I could get a job myself when I was 14 I used to bring in some money for them - but my dad would say ‘I don’t want it love! You keep it’. I used to work in  a shop, Woolworths, but I have been all around different ones, you know. 

My happiest memory is always being with my mum and dad.  This photo of me, I am the spit of my mum. The spit. 

My husband's name was Bert. He has been a while now. He died of cancer, just like my dad. They have all gone like that. We had really happy marriage. I only have David and my daughter.  That’s all.  

My son is my life now. David. He is nearly 60 now, bless him. He has to go into hospital, and it makes me so upset. Now I also have two beautiful boys, and they are both in the police force. I reared them myself I did. I told her that I will give up my job and look after them, and I did. I idolise them, I do. 

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

This is what annoys me about kids today... They’re bored and they’re got nothing to do. We played on the streets. We had Tic Tac and Cannon, Polly on the Mopstick, all activity games to get together. Now you’re into computers, that’s all there is today. I won’t take anything away from them, they’re brilliant - but you’re not mixing, they’re for one person to do.

Now with Cannon, you’d get the old lady's clothes pegs, four pegs, three in a line, put one of the top, throw a tennis ball at it. If you hit them and if you broke them, your team has to put them back up before the other team can hit you with a ball. Whoever gets hit with the ball is out of the game.

We used to have all our ups and downs. There were street fights. You didn’t mind them playing with you, but if they tried to take over in your street you’d kick them out. It’s nothing like what’s going on today with that type of fighting. Two gangs of Teddy boys were fighting down Aston Station, with bike chains and everything. I was about 14, 15 at the time. Because some old people were trying to cross the road, they put their hands up and said ‘Hang On’. They stopped, took them cross the road and then went back to their fighting That was the kind of thing it was in those days. Can you imagine that today? It was concerned with those two groups where the conflict was. It wasn’t to do with anyone else.

These kids today have got no respect at all today. They say, ‘When you give me respect me, I’ll give you respect’. It should be the other way round – when you respect your elders, you get your respect.

This is a picture of me I have in my wallet,  a passport photo when I was 19 and went in the Army. The haircuts were free in the Army.

- from conversation with Brian at the elders event at Castle Vale Community Centre on November 18th

posted by brendan j

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

A selection of the some of the lovely portraits we took during the Older Peoples Day event in Castle Vale. We gave each participant a free print of their portrait to take away - everyone went home very happy! 

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

We arrived at 10:00am in the morning at first I was a bit apprehensive as I thought that I wouldn’t be able to start a conversation with anyone.  But as it got later I started to talk with members of the community and I really enjoyed it. We met many people and it is really good to talk to elder people of the community as you can learn a lot from an older person.  My favourate part was doing the line dance ‘badly’ but I enjoyed it I would love to do it again, then me and Myles had to take photos of our experience of the day at the residents club. We also had the job of giving out free bingo cards to people. 

By Jessica

Jessica and Myles from Castle Vale School took these photos.

(And the video clip. We notice Geoff and BJ and Sally are hiding their undoubtable line-dancing skills.)

See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment  »