Post - Industrial Revolution: Exhibition 19 – Sunday 27 February 2011 Open Thursday – Sunday from 11am -6pm

Preview, The Lombard Method, 18 February 2011

 

After a very busy week of installing we are happy to invite you to the exhibition!

Saturday 19 – Sunday 27 February 2011

Open Thursday – Sunday from 11am -6pm

The Lombard Method, 68a Lombard Street, Digbeth, Birmingham, B12 0QR

Admission free

Below you can find some pictures from the talk, Fridays opening and after party in the Anchor Pub! 

 

Preview, The Lombard Method, 18 February 2011

MASH/HER/DIP, Preview, The Lombard Method, 18 February 2011

 Preview, The Lombard Method, 18 February 2011

 Kamila Szejnoch, Preview, The Lombard Method, 18 February 2011

 Preview, The Lombard Method, 18 February 2011

 

After party in the Anchor Pub and a very special Post-Industrial Revolution ale!

Artist's Talk, Eastside Projects, 17 Feb 2011

Artist's Talk, Eastside Projects, 17 Feb 2011

Culinary Delights

Well with the arrival of MASH/HER/DIP two weeks ago our schedule became phenomenally busy!  The girls got straight into research mode.  The first few days involved lots of walking around Digbeth locating building which were previously home to food based manufacturing or processing.  It turns out there was a lot of fish and bacon curing in the area.  There was also a Typhoo Tea Factory and most famously the Birds Custard Factory.  There are still working abattoirs in Digbeth, slaughter houses aren’t something I would have initially associated with the area, but I suppose it makes sense with all the transportation links nearby.   Unfortunately most other food based production has declined over the years.

Mapping out food production in Digbeth

The girls have developed a strong interest in the Polish Center situated on Bordesley Street in Digbeth.  It’s an amazing 1950s build frequented mainly by Poles who immigrated to the UK after the Second World War.  MASH/HER/DIP have dedicated much of their time to developing connections with people who visit this centre on a daily basis, many of them ex workers from factories and workshops in the region.  Their intention was to develop a dinner for these people they make connections with during the residency.

During this period the girls have experimented with creating a recipe which draws from the food based manufacturing Birmingham is famous for, incorporating ingredients such as Cadburys chocolate, Birds Custard and Typhoo Tea in such an inventive way. You’ll have to make a visit the exhibition to find out what culinary delights they came up with.

Polish Club in Digbeth

In almost every bigger city in the UK you can find Polish Centre. Polish people have travelled here throughout the centuries. However, many Poles arrived to Great Britain as political émigrés during and after the Second World War, and during communism time. After Poland's entry into the European Union in May 2004 new generation of Poles have arrived here and it is estimated that presently Polish diaspora has around 30,000 people in Birmingham.

In Birmingham Polish Club ( aka Polish Millenium House) is based in Digbeth, and was established in 1963 by Poles connected with local Polish Catholic church, for their own money. 

Nowadays, Polish Club is much less popular throughout Polish community than it used to be.

Why? According to Guardian “This place is a real oddity. Very old fashioned and mainly inhabited by ageing Poles. Pictures of the (last) Pope abound ”, and there is much truth in it. Nevertheless, I enjoy the food in the restaurant and this specific 'travel in time' climate whenever I go there.

You can find a restaurant, an English-style pub and a shop there. From time to time they also organise some cultural events, activities for mothers and children, as well as choir classes. Polish Club have rooms for hire, so don't be surprised if you find a bridal shop there, Polish Secondary School and even a University! On Saturdays they organise Saturday's Polish School, where children of emigrants can learn Polish. Troubling for me is only that this place represent the entire Polish community in Birmingham, when in fact is shaped mainly by the older generation focused around the Catholic Church. 

 

This German-English couple have been coming to the Polish Shop in Millennium House since 1969. 40 years ago this was the only one Polish shop in Birmingham – says Rita - nowadays there are dozens. I met them while they were waiting for fresh bread for already 2 hours! They know when bread is delivered, so usually they come just on time, but this day the driver was late, so they had to wait.