Echoes and Ecentricity

By Jon Bounds on May 20, 09 01:59 PM in Culture

I've been along to two wonderful art events over the last week, one you'll have to rush to catch -- the other is handily distilled into newspaper form.

Echoes from the Edge is an installation that uses film, sound, physical objects you can touch and even smells to evoke people's memories of Digbeth and Highgate. Friction Arts have been collaborating with US artist, Shannon Flattery, to create an interactive exhibition reflecting the voices, thoughts and histories of the residents and workers as the area undergoes it's most significant changes for forty years.

Echos from the edge
Photo by Nicky Getgood on Flickr

Local Digbeth blogger Nicky Getgood has been effusive with her praise, and I found much to make me agree. The interactive sets are immersive and the audio memories that you find along the trail will bring Birmingham to life. It's really spectacular and on until the 30th May, Thursday to Sundays.

My second art experience also took place in Digbeth, but in the rather more alcoholic atmosphere of the Anchor pub. It was the launch of the new issue of The Eccentric City bills itself as "the World's first dedicated eccentric newspaper" - and I'm sure it is, whatever oddness the Daily Mail et al get up to. It's the work of artist and "eccentric archaeologist" Harry Palmer who edits contributions from around the World, he says it "serves to review, preview, present and promote the nuances of personal and creative pursuits, interests and fascinations".

What that means is a paper where discussions of art projects, literature, poetry can sit next to guides to hitch-hiking or brewing nettle beer. You won't find anything out about MPs expenses, but your view of people and their wide variety of interests will grow ever larger.

For the launch Harry and Simon, designer and for that day wearer of a shocking pink wig, was fund-raising with an 'eccentric auction'. I came away with a hedgehog shaped holder, that cost me ÃÂ£1.35, what it holds I'm not sure, but given that it's shaped nothing like a hedgehog I guess I'd better find some hedgehogs to put into it.

Copies of the paper are mostly given away free, you should find them in all sorts of places (in fact the website has a gallery of worldwide readers).