Meeting at Centrala Space for a Digbeth Canal Walk
PRISM Photography linked up with the Canal and River Trust and organised a Digbeth Canal walk along the towpaths of the Birmingham Canal Navigations. Our guide for the photographic walk was Tom Hicks, of Black Country Type fame. We met at Centrala, which has a canal side location. The group of photographers included a mix of familiar and new faces, and soon there were friendly discussions between us.
Tom Hicks and Black Country Type: A Colourful Presentation
Francesco Falcine from PRISM Photography welcomed us and introduced Nick Cleaver, community engagement officer from the Canal and River Trust West Midlands. Next, Tom Hicks gave us a short presentation about his photographic work with Black Country Type. His pictures are full of colour and display a humorous take on life in the Black Country.
Onto the Towpath: Graffiti and Wild Foliage at Bordesley Junction
For the start of our Digbeth Canal Walk, Tom and Nick led us onto the canal via Great Barr Street. Immediately we were on the towpath, and the area became quiet, with the busy traffic fading to a low hum. We walked up to Bordesley Junction and explored the area. The walls are covered with bright, colourful graffiti, and the foliage had grown wild, escaping the constraints of the towpath. Old industry dominated the sides of the canal. Broken windows and missing drainpipes reflected its rundown nature.
Rubbish in the Canal: A Conversation with the Canal and River Trust
Rubbish was present both in and around the canal, much to Nick Cleaver’s disgust. “Why do people persist in dropping rubbish in the canal?” he asked. He went on to tell us that the Canal and River Trust spends much of its budget on keeping the canals clean. If people looked after the canals, then the money could be spent on more worthwhile projects.
The Bond, Peaky Blinders Studios and MasterChef’s Warehouse
Tom Hicks was on hand to talk about his work, but what was most fascinating was watching what he photographed. I learnt a great deal just from watching Tom take pictures and seeing how he composed them. All his photographs were taken with his phone camera.
We retraced our steps along the towpath. The Bond centre looked neat and tidy from our side of the canal. We were also next to the film studios of Stephen Knight, creator of Peaky Blinders. The studios were just behind the graffiti on the canal walls.
Beneath Curzon Street Bridge: Digbeth Canal Photography Meets HS2
We passed artwork by Annatomix on Our Digbeth Canal Walk and then the warehouse where MasterChef is filmed. In comparison to the Bond, the area alongside the canal looked ill-kempt. Canal boats passed through as we entered the magical underworld beneath Curzon Street railway bridge. We had now left Digbeth as we emerged on the other side of the bridge and were immediately greeted by the high steel pillars of the HS2 works.
White plastic sheeting covered the large engineering statues, which would soon become part of the HS2 terminal for Birmingham. We moved on to the Birmingham City University campus and photographed the new developments taking place there. One of my favourite buildings is the lockmaster’s cottage, with its boarded door and windows decorated with Lucy McLauchlan’s artwork.
Back to Centrala Space: Reflections and What’s Next
It was time to make our way back to Centrala for a debrief and refreshments. This was the third and final instalment of the recent canal walks run by PRISM Photography in conjunction with the Canal and River Trust. I was pleased that I was able to join one of the walks. Off the three the Digbeth Canal walk was the one that I wanted to join most. Next, we submit three photographs from the day and wait to see which of these is selected for the exhibition at Centrala in August. More details to follow.
Digbeth has been covered in my blog and here is a link to get you started. As a member of the Canal and River Trust, I enjoy walking along the canals and I have covered other cities including Manchester and the Regents Canal, London.
