Detail at Deakin & Francis by Andy Pilsbury
In 2018 we embarked on a project to gather oral histories of people who have historical links and lived experiences of the Jewellery Quarter. With support and training from Oral Historian Dr Siobhán Stevenson, our volunteers interviewed people working in and supporting the jewellery trade. Twenty-seven oral histories were recorded.
Photographers Andy Pilsbury and Inès Elsa Dalal were commissioned to produce portraits of the people interviewed. An open call was made for people to attend drop-in sessions to be photographed with their memorabilia and some portrait sitters were photographed in their homes.
The material gathered was displayed in the ‘Still’ exhibition.
“I volunteered to be part of the Heritage Project shortly after I retired, and it has been a great experience. It has offered up the chance to be involved in so many activities, from conducting oral history interviews and undertaking in depth desktop research through to filmmaking and supporting a number of events. I’ve learnt new skills (e.g. scriptwriting), met some lovely people and learnt so much about the rich history of the area in which I live.” Steve Rose, Research Volunteer
Find out more https://th.jewelleryquarter.net/peoples-archive/
