The first day of the residency

St. Basils Church, Heath Mill Lane, phot. Ell Brown

Kate Pennington-Wilson and I collected our first artist Kamila Szejnoch from Digbeth Coach station yesterday evening, so the residency has officially started.  The first day went very well. The weather was good, we had an original fish & chips from the Rag Market and we discovered some new facts about Digbeth. We also had a proper look into a fascinating building, the St Basil's Church in Digbeth which is now the St Basil's Centre on  Heath Mill Lane. St Basil's Centre works with young people to prevent youth homelessness. In the 1960s building was the meeting place of the Double Zero motorcycle club. A lovely lady who works there let us in and shown arround, so we could see this great example of Arts and Crafts primitivism, constructed in 1910-11 to a design by A.S. Dixon, from the inside. Building was refurbished in the 1980s, so even though the original chapel is still there, the nave is filled in with the offices. Originally the building was built as a catholic church, but now the chapel can be used from time to time by all religions.

Birmingham Rag Market, phot.  mondoagogo