Field Trip 1: Charity Shop
For my first field trip I headed to a charity shop close to where I live on Cardigan Road.
This charity shop is massive, a real treasure trove full of random bits and pieces. I thought a possible avenue to take my research could be looking into the stories behind the items that people bring in to the shop to be sold on.
Charity shops have a real personal aspect to them in comparison to normal shops selling products. Each item has a history with its previous owner and I hoped to be able to find items that spoke of this story, through scuffs, marks, creases, missing pieces etc.
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| Old Cameras |
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| Board games |
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| Golfing clubs |
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| Badminton racket |
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| Mixtapes |
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| Amp |
When I first arrived and had a little look around, what jumped out at me first was that this was a great place to spot collections. Everything similar had been grouped together, all the electrical items, all the games, all the tapes/cd's/vinyl records etc. The charity shop on the whole did not look orderly, it was an accumulation of anything and everything sellable...however the organisation of these random bits and bobs made it easy to shop and easy to discover possible gems.
The items that really jumped out at me where the different sewing machines (and the amount of them). I have a love of all things old and well crafted, and these items were truly beautiful and so intricate.
Keeping collections in mind, there was a lot of old furniture, cupboards, wardrobes etc in the store. Although a lot of it was extremely dated and tatty, it was the handles that interested me. These parts of the furniture were all completely in tact and hardly tarnished. I began to think where these items of furniture had been all this time and who had used them and opened doors with them over the years. They were also again ornately patterned and beautiful and had great detail to begin collecting.
These photos were just a few of the many that I took on this trip and I do feel inspired with what I have found. The problem with this location is that I worry it is slightly too obvious. This is an untold story I am meant to be aiming for and I feel that the untold stories of these items and what they could have been used for, by whom etc is something that other people on the course might be doing.
I would like to go to the shop again (when it is less busy) and ask the people that work there about any items that really stand out to them in their mind, having been a little odd, or having a great personal story attached to them. It was really difficult on this first trip as there were only 2 members of staff and they were completely rushed off their feet (I hardly saw them) but I did take note of the type of people coming into to the shop. A lot of them seemed well known by the staff, frequent and local visitors perhaps and they all seemed to have an idea of what they were looking for.
Shoppers:
- Young student stuck to the box of vinyl meticulously flicking through each and every one to find that special track.
- The older woman on the hunt for a bargain in the shoe, bag and clothing section.
- The elderly man transfixed with the tools hanging up on the wall and in desperate need of special wall screws.
- The two young polish women needing a coffee table for their new house.
Possible ideas to look into:
- Stories behind certain items, how they were made/used/where they have been. A history.
- Why the items have been brought into the shop (item no longer needed by owner, humanising certain items, giving them a character etc)
- Collections, what you can find in a charity shop, strange, unique, outdated
- The people who shop in charity shops and the items they are looking for / likely to buy - stereotypes?
- The charity shop itself and its history. Where the proceeds go and the stories surrounding the people this money helps
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Field trip 2: The West Indian Centre
When thinking about possible locations to visit for my field trips, I found it helpful as a starting point to look into what interests me. A big influence for me, my work, my life is music. In particular, I am really into my Dub and Reggae and where is it that I am able to enjoy these types of music?- The West Indian Centre here in Chapel Town, Leeds.
I have to admit I am a frequent visitor, but as a venue I know very little about it. I just turn up late, party hard and leave in the early hours of the morning. That is it. Its a great time, but there must be more to this place than the events they hold here.
Research
Before actually visiting the centre, I wanted to do some secondary research into the place itself to get a good idea of its history and what it is about. I was so surprised by what I found.
- Established in 1979
- Founder: Ian Charles MBE
- Leeds West Indian Carnival held every year by the centre in Chapel Town
- Carnival began in 1967 and is a huge well known celebration, the largest West Indian carnival in Europe.
- The centre began as a base and meeting place for the West Indian community in leeds - something the city was lacking.
- The centre houses the Leeds West Indian Women's Group, The Leeds West Indian Domino's Group and the Leeds West Indian Centre Charitable Trust.
- The venue not only holds musical events and is frequented by many students studying here in Leeds, but is also used as a base for all weddings, funeral services, christenings and parties within the west indian community.
In light of all this research, it is clear how important The West Indian Centre is to the West Indian population here in Leeds - something I knew nothing about. It has great standing within the community and doesn't seem in danger of becoming less popular any time soon.
For my field trip idea, I decided to buy tickets for a well known weekend event at the West Indian Centre known as Subdub. I have been many times before, but as this was running 2 nights in a row, I thought it would be a great idea and a good amount of time to get some first hand research. (Not an excuse to party I promise).
As you can imagine I have a million more photos from the weekend but these are a few that stood out to me and gave a good representation of the event.
Speaking to party goers at the event was a bit more of a challenge across the nights. I found it really hard to approach people in this environment as they were either way too messy (drink, drugs, etc) and I wasn't on their level, or they were having such a good time I didn't want to interrupt. Because of this, I decided to note down a few quotes that I heard throughout the event. (I need to become more confident speaking to strangers)
I did pluck up the courage however, to do some very quick drawing whilst I was there. I managed to have a few attempts at this before I had a growing number of people interrupting me, asking me what I was up too and why. At least I think that is what they were asking...it was difficult to understand what anyone was saying because of the insanely loud level of bass coming from the surrounding speakers. A few other quick drawings were done from the photos I had manage to get on the night.
Overall I think this visit to the West Indian Centre was a success. It refreshed my memory of the atmosphere at an event like this and helped to spark a few ideas of where I want this research to lead. I also think this location is vastly different to what other people on my course will be looking into - which cant be a bad thing as i am all about having a unique idea.
If I was to go to the centre again, I would like to go during the daytime as a contrast to this event and maybe attend one of the community clubs that they have going on and speak to the locals / staff that work there. There are bound to be stories personal to the people who use the centre that are only going to be found in speaking with people.
Possible Ideas to look into:
- History of the West Indian Centre
- What it is used for and its importance/place in society here in leeds
- The types of people who use the centre and the issue surrounding why - their story
- SubDub/Irration Steppas - a history of the night
- Dub music - its followers, message in the music, meditative
- A visual representation of the music/tracks played at an event
- An untold story of the night - a focus on experience and the types of things that go on/the people you meet at an event
- Stories behind the people that work here - day and night: bouncers, barmaids, cleaners, an event goer, event organiser, DJ's...a comparison between people and their story.
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