The People’s City opened at the Refuge on 30 January 2020. BCA’s first Manchester exhibition and first collaboration with the venue, it brought together photographs of everyday life, music and youth culture across the North West.
Curated by Paul Wright, the exhibition was developed with DJ Luke Unabomber and the Refuge team, with sponsorship from 5plus Architects.
The exhibition grew out of BCA’s connection with Luke Unabomber. Working closely with Luke and the Refuge, Paul Wright brought the archive’s photography into a setting closely connected with Manchester’s music and cultural life.
The collaboration introduced new audiences to the archive and began a relationship with the venue that continued through later BCA exhibitions.
Peter J Walsh’s photographs record Manchester’s acid house and club culture as it developed during the late 1980s and early 1990s. His pictures from The Haçienda place the dancers, clothes and shared experience of the dancefloor at the centre of that history.
Rob Bremner’s Liverpool photographs brought the everyday life of Merseyside’s communities into the exhibition. His portraits of residents, families and local characters record the city through the people who lived there.
Johnny and Pat, photographed in Vauxhall in 1987, also featured on the exhibition’s original poster.
The launch filled the Refuge’s Public Bar with photographers, friends and visitors. The evening’s DJs included Luke Unabomber, Paul Wright, Neil Summers, Glenn Kitson and Abigail Ward.
Originally planned to run until spring 2020, the exhibition remained installed for around a year as COVID restrictions disrupted the programme. The January launch took place just weeks before the first lockdown; the photographs stayed in situ through a very different year.
Exhibition
The People’s City
Venue
The Refuge, Manchester
Opened
30 January 2020
Installation
The photographs remained in situ for around a year during the COVID period.
Curator
Paul Wright, British Culture Archive
Photographers
Peter J Walsh, Rob Bremner and Richard Davis, alongside contributions from The People’s Archive.
Collaborators
Luke Unabomber and the Refuge
Sponsor
5plus Architects