Salford City Council has announced that Picturing Eccles, a fascinating photography project by the historic town’s Photographer in Residence Paula Keenan, in partnership with Open Eye Gallery, will be showcased in an exhibition at Eccles Library, and in shop windows around the town centre from Friday 6th September – 19th October.
As the regeneration of Eccles town centre continues, Picturing Eccles is an initiative designed to preserve the history of the town and its residents through existing photographs of beautiful memories created locally; a great party, a family wedding, a sunny walk by the canal, a team of workers in the old mills, or anything that brings a proud smile to the face. New photographs are being taken to sit alongside them, celebrating the future of Eccles and its growing community.
Salford City Council and Open Eye Gallery teamed up to deliver the vision and their first move was to appoint Paula Keenan as Eccles’ very own Photographer in Residence. Paula wanted to involve the people of Eccles and encouraged all amateur photographers to look at the town through a new lens and put a call out to anyone who is part of a group in the area to record their activities and celebrate their achievements.
Paula visited a wide range of local groups including church bellringers, allotment holders, chess players, pub goers (plus much more), and led photography walks around the town with local historian Mark Charnley to learn new skills and heritage facts. She interviewed and photographed many people with a rich history living locally, and with many contributions from the enthusiastic people of Eccles, curated a stunning exhibition that will be talked about for years to come.
Eccles’ Photographer in Residence Paula Keenan says: “As a socially engaged photographer working in Eccles, the last 9 months has confirmed why I originally started working with communities. You never know where the journey you are embarking will take you as you meet new people and share their memories and stories.
“I was invited by many groups to talk about the Picturing Eccles project and I have been rewarded with warmth, hospitality and generous donations of archive photographs and shared memories. This project has enabled me to meet many keen photographers who not only displayed their passion for photography but their commitment and loyalty to being part of the community in Eccles and promoting it as a great place to live.
“I would also like to thank the group of photographers who took part in weekly workshops, for the time and commitment they spent sharing skills and knowledge with each other. Thank you to everyone who has given me the opportunity to create new work in Eccles.”
Elizabeth Wewiora of Open Eye Gallery says: “Open Eye Gallery believes in the power of bringing people together through photography. The Picturing Eccles project has been a shining example of this. It has been a pleasure to watch and support Photographer in Residence Paula Keenan develop her collaborative photographic work with the communities of Eccles. The work produced is a testament to the diversity, creativity and social passion that makes up the people of this area. People’s interests, relationships and personalities shine through.
“Open Eye Gallery has a long standing history of working on what we call socially engaged photographic projects, where photographers and communities come together to tell their story through the power of the camera lens. As part of our joint MA in socially engaged photography with University of Salford, students have also been able to work closely with Paula and the community and have learnt so much from this experience – thank you to everyone who has been involved for giving their time and enthusiasm to the project.”
Picturing Eccles will be on display from 6th September – 19th October.
