In 2022, British Art Show 9 – BAS9 – visits several cities round the UK. One of them is Wolverhampton. Running alongside this extravaganza is BAS9 Offsite, which is a programme for local creatives, and I’m delighted to be one of nine artists commissioned by the Asylum Art Gallery in Wolverhampton to create an audio piece for their ‘If We Had This Space’ project.
All nine pieces will focus on derelict, unused sites in the city and imagine what they could be, how they could be reclaimed, what we could do with them. I’ve been examining the history of and the possibilities for 15 Darlington Street in the city centre, site of the former Wild Bytes cafe. It’s been a fascinating project to be part of, and it’s made me look at Wolverhampton – and the vacant buildings within it – with fresh eyes. Imagine what those could be! Imagine a world where we made something of them, where they played their part in making communities thrive! You’d think, in the 6th biggest economy in the world, it’d be an option….
My poem will be available as part of a digital art trail through Wolverhampton in Spring 2022. I hope you enjoy it, and the pieces created by the other artists involved, too. Thanks to Asylum Art Gallery for the opportunity to imagine these spaces transformed.