Singleton makes dramatic return to Birmingham
One of the men who helped to shape Birmingham’s regeneration is returning to the city to showcase his more artistic side.
Philip Singleton, the former CEO of Millennium Point and assistant director of city centre development at Birmingham City Council, is staging a photographic exhibition of his work at Bar Opus, One Snowhill.
The exhibition, Pause Project, features 12 images of buildings that are in a state of transition.
The photographs include an empty cell in Steelhouse Lane police station; the safe deposit boxes in the former Municipal Bank in Broad Street; the industrial units at Icknield Port Loop; and the BCU Conservatoire, which has been demolished to make way for the new Paradise development.
Mr Singleton, who quit as CEO of Millennium Point in 2015, is studying for a Masters in photography at the Falmouth University Institute of Photography.
The curtain goes upon the new exhibition on Wednesday (September 20).
With a background in architecture and urban development, he said his interest in photography grew out of considering the architectural metamorphosis across the city.
“Birmingham has to be one of the most rapidly changing cities in the country and is a master at reinventing itself,” he said.
“I wanted to capture and document what is happening and have been able to gain access to spaces that are private or hidden away. These aren’t architectural studies; instead, I’ve focused on another layer of the empty, melancholic spaces that people leave behind.”
To further cement the exhibition’s connection to the city, Mr Singleton used Digbeth-based photographic developers Palm Laboratories and framers Harris Moore to create the exhibition.
The exhibition is the third to be staged at Bar Opus this year as part of the venue’s bid to support local creative talent.
“Bar Opus has given me a tremendous opportunity to exhibit my work and it has been incredibly generous in its support,” he said. “It’s great that a high-quality independent business in the city is helping emerging local artists and I’m excited to have my works exhibited there.”
Irene Allen, director, said: “2017 has been a transformational year for us as we’ve sought to bring the work of local artists into Bar Opus. We’ve enjoyed giving a platform to some incredible artists and our last exhibition of the year is another fascinating study, documenting spaces that we don’t normally see. We’ve no doubt that they’ll be a real talking point for our customers.”
Previous exhibitions have featured the work of artist Sophie Hedderwick, Key & Tam, the creative duo behind LOWLFE, and Birmingham artist and owner of Disorder Boutique, Mark Howard.
