A UNIQUE photographic exhibition showcasing 1970s Birmingham in all its ‘boring’ glory is currently on show in Dublin.
The collection by Bradford-born photographer John Myers is comprehensively titled ‘33 portraits, 14 boring photographs, 10 televisions, 8 sub stations, 6 houses, 3 furniture stores & one giraffe’.
It boasts 75 prints capturing the ‘tenderness’ of ordinary life in 1970s ‘Middle England’, complete candlewick bedspreads, TV cabinets and questionable sense of style.
This month the nostalgic black and white portfolio is on display at the Gallery of Photography in Dublin, thanks to a collaboration with the Library of Birmingham, where much of the artist’s archive is now held, and Birmingham’s Ikon Gallery.
Picture: John MyersMyers, who was appointed a Senior Lecturer in Fine Art at Stourbridge College in 1969, began taking photos in 1972.
Each piece in his ‘Middle England' series was taken between 1972 and 1979 within walking distance of his Stourbridge home.
Of the collection, a representative for the Dublin gallery stated: “It delivers a blast of nostalgia for the over-forties, and a shot of cool irony for younger stylistas.”
They added: “Above all, it invites viewers to look again at the overlooked and to celebrate photography’s ability to democratically record the world around us.”
The Myers exhibition will remain at the Gallery of Photography, Ireland until March 30.
For further information about the artist and his work visit www.ikon-gallery.org
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