Book Launch: ‘544m’ By Kevin Crooks
THURS 30 NOV / 6–8PM / OPEN EYE GALLERY
FREE, REGISTER HERE
Join us for the launch of ‘544m’, a new publication commemorating St. Helens’ mining heritage and communities by Kevin Crooks, published by 0.08Imprints.
Kevin Crooks is a St. Helens based Photographer. Throughout 2023 Kevin has recorded three miners who once worked at Bold, Sutton Manor and Wood Pit collieries in St. Helens. The recordings form part of a project which was funded through the St. Helens Borough of Culture Open Grants. These recordings will feature alongside a series of photographs of the collieries where they used to work, and how they look today.
Most collieries in St. Helens closed shortly after the 1984-85 miners’ strikes, after which most were used as quarries and/or landfill sites and then in the mid 1990’s most were landscaped and redeveloped into recreational nature areas, which are used today by residents and visitors alike.
Throughout the process of the production of the work, Kevin recorded conversations that he had with the miners in which they reminisce upon their recollections of working at the collieries, whilst reflecting on the impact it had on their personal lives and the lives of those within their own communities.
These conversations will be included as part of the final presentation of the work. A selection of poems specially written by Helen Angell will also accompany the photographs.
Copies of the book will be available for purchase.
Image: Kevin Crooks
THURS 30 NOV / 6–8PM / OPEN EYE GALLERY
FREE, REGISTER HERE
Join us for the launch of ‘544m’, a new publication commemorating St. Helens’ mining heritage and communities by Kevin Crooks, published by 0.08Imprints.
Kevin Crooks is a St. Helens based Photographer. Throughout 2023 Kevin has recorded three miners who once worked at Bold, Sutton Manor and Wood Pit collieries in St. Helens. The recordings form part of a project which was funded through the St. Helens Borough of Culture Open Grants. These recordings will feature alongside a series of photographs of the collieries where they used to work, and how they look today.
Most collieries in St. Helens closed shortly after the 1984-85 miners’ strikes, after which most were used as quarries and/or landfill sites and then in the mid 1990’s most were landscaped and redeveloped into recreational nature areas, which are used today by residents and visitors alike.
Throughout the process of the production of the work, Kevin recorded conversations that he had with the miners in which they reminisce upon their recollections of working at the collieries, whilst reflecting on the impact it had on their personal lives and the lives of those within their own communities.
These conversations will be included as part of the final presentation of the work. A selection of poems specially written by Helen Angell will also accompany the photographs.
Copies of the book will be available for purchase.
Image: Kevin Crooks
