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09 April – A hazy morning Breakfast at Rosehill House

2 businessmen, a family, a couple, and me I’m sat near the door – as yesterday A casually smart dressed woman found her table at the far end of the dining room Walking back past me towards the breakfast bar I smiled and she said “good morning” “When we left Surrey yesterday the sun was shining – and look at it here” “Why didn’t you bring the sun shine with you? – Are you on holiday here?” “Holiday – good god no. My father-in law died recently and we’re here visiting my mother-in-law. What brings you to Burnley? “I’m here working – I’m an artist and I’ve been asked to create work, commissioned as part of Burnley’s regeneration process” “Oh – you should talk to Paul, he’s a banker. He will have a thing or two to say about the regeneration of Burnley, his father was head of the council here” I didn’t ask when – but Paul looked to be in his early 50’s Paul – by that point was stood next to her “I grew up in Burnley at the time before the clean air act. It was a smoky ex-mill town that wasn’t doing too badly because there was a lot of industry - but as for regeneration – they did a lot when I was growing up but you’re never going to be able to do much with a town filled with

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terraced workers cottages. But if you go up to Crown Point (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcCig9mJ3II) and look over the town you get a completely different impression. And then there’s the Canal “mile straight” and the rivers - the town is built on rivers” “Yes” – I replied – “There’s water everywhere in Burnley” “We call that damp” his wife retorted. “The surrounding countryside is nice, there’s places like Howarth, but you certainly wouldn’t come to Burnley for a holiday – we’re leaving tonight – thank god.” Subjective views… subjective |səb’jektiv| adjective 1 based on or influenced by personal feelings, tastes, or opinions : his views are highly subjective | there is always the danger of making a subjective judgment. Contrasted with objective. • dependent on the mind or on an individual's perception for its existence. (From the Apple Mac dictionary) And when talking to individuals on a personal level – that’s what I get A local authority or an H.M.R. Pathfinder can try to be objective But people – those who live, work, and visit a place - are always going to be subjective – describing in conversation what a place is to them – their personal views and their personal opinions

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09 April Mourn Day Thursday Not too cold – changeable April weather with showers

Thursday 9 April Kerry with youth and community worker, Sharon Connery

Perambulating with the portable studio, walking, talking, and drawing life as seen under a microscope

Around the town’s streets and at the hiddenplaces sites

Out and about with Burnley born and bred Sharon Connery – community development worker and cheerful social being – but not with the microscope. From my perambulations yesterday I surmised that the town centre is not the best place to examine micro-life (Date coded photos courtesy of Sharon) Sharon met me at Rosehill House Hotel at 10.30 am. We drove into the town and parked up in Cow Lane pay and display, unloaded the studiolab, donned out jackets, and perambulated to the Site 11 – Cow Lane bridge - for a press shoot arranged by Kevin, the Burnley Council press officer

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We waited but no one from the press turned up (the Clitheroe and North West terrorist raids still hot news http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7990719.stm) So Kevin decided to take the photos and send them out to the press We did our photo shoot at Site 12 – the bin bridge

PR stuff out of the way, Sharon and I set off on our way to the hiddenplaces Yesterday, on my own, I had been feeling a little too shy to venture along the pedestrian shopping area. But today, in the company of Sharon – all shyness evaporated as we headed through the precinct towards Site 1 – The Continental Egyptian Barbecue House. They do fantastic coffee, lunches, and baklava. I thought it would be a good idea to stock up on luncheon goodies before hunger struck.

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As we made our way a man passed by “Have you got burgers?” “No” “Ok – what have you got in the cart?” “Art” “Oh – no – I don’t want any art” Before I could say any more he’s sped on his way The pedestrian area is typical of any you might find anywhere in the country A wide paved area – formerly a road – raised flowerbeds in the middle, with shops either side What makes Burnley’s area a little different is the bandstand. Other wise it’s pretty bog standard

Today there was a guy busking near the entrance to the covered shopping precinct. Although not one of the hiddenplaces, we decided to pull up the cart for a while. Perched on the wall of a near by flowerbed were 2 older gentlemen and a third in an electric mobility vehicle. Sharon whispered to me “They’re curious but they’re not going to come over and ask what we’re up to – I’m going over to introduce myself and talk to them”

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And that’s precisely why I invited Sharon to spend a day with me. With vast experience in youth and community work – Sharon’s approach is quite different to mine… We both love talking with people and having a good old natter – but Sharon is a few degrees more forthright than me - not in your face or overpowering in any way, she simply ‘reads’ situations differently and acts accordingly Her instincts were absolutely correct The gentlemen were indeed curious and they did want to engage We talked to them for quite some time, mainly about old buildings of Burnley and they began reeling off a list of names – all ending with ‘hole’ I innocently asked, “What does hole mean?” Sharon glanced at me – “HALL they’re all old halls – she looked at the men “she’s not from ‘round ‘ere” After a while mobility man whizzed off at speed Soon followed by one of the other men But we spoke with Keith for ages - and what an interesting character… Not originally from Burnley, but drawn here by a woman – he lost his heart to a Burnley lass and left Manchester to live and work settle down in the area. Sadly she’ no longer with him, she passed away a few years ago.

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For years Keith worked down a pit in near-by Huncoat http://www.jnadin1.50megs.com/custom.html. He hewed coal from a 30 inch seam, crawling on his side and hacking away with a pick. He told us of his cousin who also worked down the mine – 6’5” and 18 stone – I had to wonder how he managed in such a confined space! Nowadays Keith spends much of his time metal detecting in the surrounding countryside. He was coy about his finds but he did tell us about one treasure he’d found. He’d done for the day and was packing up. He leant his detector against a wall and it began to beep. “I thought it was picking up on a bit of old lead piping, but decided to dig anyway. I scraped back the mortar and pulled out the stone. Behind it I found a rotting drawstring bag and inside was 27 gold sovereigns – all Victorian, going right through from when she was a young queen to the end of her reign.” We began to talk about the changes in Burnley over the years and Keith said that the biggest changes – apart from the buildings that have been knocked down, and the new buildings erected in their place – the biggest changes have been in the pubs “When I was young – all the pubs had a piano, and you’d get up and sing even if you couldn’t sing. Then I remember the duke boxes coming in. They’ve all changed now. That one over there used to be called The Boot, and next to the door is a carving of a boot” [it’s now surrounded by scaffold and sheeting – most recently having been a Yates’s Wine Lodge] “And behind the Swan is an old lock-up – where they used to lock up the drunks – it’s still got the bars on the windows” Sharon – although now living in Huncoat is still what I’d call a local - was keen to go take a look. This was news to her and she was dead excited to discover something new about a town she thought she knew. Keith took her to the drunk tank.

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Whilst they were gone I made my first drawing of the day, a young man sat on a near-by bench with his dog.

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A few conversations later… Including one with a woman called Sharon who wanted to see much more greenery and plants in Burnley centre to make it more like Hebden Bridge http://www.hebdenbridge.co.uk/ And if you think about it – fundamentally – built environment and topography speaking – there’s not a lot of difference between Hebden and Burnley – they are both northern mill towns nestled within a stunning landscape, built around water courses with rivers and a canal running through the centre.

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And a few sketches later… Including one of the busker – Sharon and I decide to head to the Egyptian Barbecue House. The busker was still singing… As we departed, he sang about “Claret and the Blues” in other words – a song in homage to Burnley Town Football Club http://www.burnleyfootballclub.com/page/History/0,,10413~67875,00.html

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From the pedestrian area we made our way along Keirby Walk to the best eatery in town –

The Continental - A family run business hidden away behind the unsightly Keirby Hotel with it’s closed down Swiss Bar (which Sharon says was THE place to be seen when it first opened – fondue being the chic thing back in the 80’s) Not the place to be seen, or to stay in 2009 … http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g503927-d667169-Reviews-The_Keirby_Park_Hotel-Burnley_Lancashire_England.html

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In the shadow of the Keirby, at and hiddenplace Site 1, a piazza in the offing if anyone other than the owner of The Continental has the foresight - Sharon and I tucked into home cooked falafel and salad stuffed pitta bread followed by hand crafted baklava, as the mouth-watering smells of char grilled cooking wafted through the air. If you want to eat Middle Eastern food this is the place to come to. And if the owner can pursued the current owner of this plateau of paving to sell - then outside eating in sight of the Brun could be a part of Burnley’s future. The Continental also offers home made milkshakes packed full of ice cream and freshly squeezed (by hand not some fancy orange rotating machine) orange juice. Truly a hidden treasure – but not one that’s gone unnoticed by the locals. Parked up here turned out to be a lucrative conversation location - including a chat with Ian Banks – one of the curators and masterminds behind the concept hiddenplaces. Sharon gave him a right old quizzing about the project -

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If I were to write up all that I have heard, encountered and experienced, I’d be here for yonks – and so dear reader, would you But I do want to tell you about Michael Mobey from Burnley Wood, who passed by and stopped to find out what we were up to. Burnley wood (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burnley_Wood) is just outside the town centre – on the other side of the canal ‘mile straight’. It’s an area that – as Michael puts it “… looks like it belongs in a foreign war-torn country. It’s as if bombs have been dropped on it leaving behind huge craters” http://www.bbc.co.uk/lancashire/360/burnley_wood.shtml

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He was referring to the mass demolition of terraced homes and the Compulsory Purchase Order (C.P.O.) dispersal of his community.

He has much to say on this subject. His life, and the life of his grandchildren, have been totally disrupted, and they have no idea when the new houses will be built – or how long they are going to have to live amongst boarded up houses and demolition areas. He asked - “Why did the council – with all that money – buy up so many homes?” Now they can’t rebuild the areas. Why didn’t they concentrate on one area and get the work done?” Michael is a member of Burnley Wood Community Action Group http://www.ncvo-vol.org.uk/governanceandleadership/?id=9366 and for 6 years they have been working to voice community issues in planning housing and regeneration and to identify other burning issues. http://www.burnleyexpress.net/letters/Letters-January-11th.3664533.jp He went on to tell me that recently they lost their community centre – Terrace Fields One Stop Shop - and now they are fighting to regain access to the property and reopen it. What Michael has to say should be heard and recorded. Today was not the appropriate time – he was with his grand children - they had just been swimming – hair still wet they stood next to him shivering. Sharon had talked with them whilst I talked with Michael. I took his contact details in the hope that I can meet him again, and talk to him in more detail about the gritty issues of regeneration as experienced by a resident amongst the upheaval.

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Today I/we heard many views from many people, young, old, in-between, indigenous, white comer-inners, and 1st generation ethnic minorities, all living in Burnley, or connected to the place by family ties Many views painted a negative picture “It’s boring…” “There’s nothing here…” “It’s a dump…” “It’s damp…” And that’s why I want to write about our encounter with Chris and his 13-year-old daughter Sophie

What a delight to hear positive tones They both love living in Burnley They think it has some really interesting buildings and architecture And the canal is a massive asset - Not to mention the hills – which fringe the town “You can get into open country within minutes – how many towns can you do that from?” Chris – like Keith - was drawn to Burnley by love – falling for a Lancashire lass.

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He has lived here for 25 years and has no intention of leaving Sophie wants to travel and see other places – Chris endorses this – but Sophie said she would be happy to live all her life in Burnley; it has all she wants and needs. Her 2 favourite past times are – reading and borrowing books from the library, one of her favourite places in Burnley - and climbing, at the activity centre and in the Pennine landscape. She too has a love of the surrounding countryside. Our last hiddenplace of the day was Site 2 – St Peter’s Church.

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Prior to beginning my ALTERNATIVE VIEWS Sharon had urged me to be cautious in the churchyard – it’s not a place she wanted me to be on my own. I couldn’t understand why – for me the grounds of the church are a tranquil and quiet place - with old graves and cherry blossom

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But amongst the dead and the flora are traces of “recreational use” - empty ‘scription bottles, tin foil, wraps, beer cans, and alcohol bottles.

Not unexpected for Sharron… “It’s the very fact that this is a hidden place and a sheltered space that makes it so attractive for this kind of use – and this isn’t young people – this is adult activity” Non the less - I still manage to find the unexpected and the wildly delightful - peering over the church wall - wild garlic in bucket loads on the banks of the Brun

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We made our way back through the pedestrian area and the busker – who was just packing up – came over to us “Oh I’m so glad you’ve come back I was desperate to ask you what you were doing. What are you doing?” We explained And we chatted for a while about street performing and personal stuff that I’m not wishing to publically disclose… Robert is a professional busker – and, as I had assumed from lyrics – a local man. I told Robert I’d be out and about tomorrow too – with a poet – and, if he liked, she could write a poem for him He told me he’d be in the exact same spot tomorrow…

To hear Robert sing go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErTs1grp8cE&feature=channel http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=192048790

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Last stop of the day… Site 11 – Cow Lane bridge - but no one was around So we packed up

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THE EVENING… I dined with Steve Connelly and Karen Lyons – 2 of the 7 hiddenplace artists - at The Inn on The Wharf where 2 can dine for a tenner – but you get what you pay for… My idea was that all 7 of us artists responding to Burnley’s hiddenplaces should get together and talk about our work in Burnley and the subject of Art and Regeneration Lucy Bergman and Jill Randall couldn’t come because both are off on their holidays, although when invited Lucy did say that it was a great idea for us all to meet up because even though she is part of a ‘group’ she doesn’t feel a part of a group at all as we haven’t all met yet. Unfortunately Alison White texted apologies at 6.30 – a stomach bug And Rizwan and Rizwan also texted apologies – 7.00pm So it was just me, Karen and Steve And we didn’t really get around to the subject of Art and Regeneration – instead we talked about art, our art, and life as an artist…