Josh Allen is a contemporary historian and writer based in south Birmingham. His work has appeared in publications as diverse as Vice, The Observer, New Statesman, Novara Media, Apollo Magazine and the London Review of Books, as well as a wide array of regional and specialist publications. Whilst as a project manager and content producer […]

Laura Dicken is an award winning visual artist based in the Black Country, England. She works nationally and internationally predominantly using analogue photography and photo montage to make collaborative work using a process built around meaningful connection, conversations and participation. Through her work Laura hopes to create opportunities for previously untold stories to be shared […]

Indian born, Kuli Kohli runs a Punjabi Women’s Writing Group and helps run Blakenhall Writers’ Group. She writes a regular blog for Disability Arts Online. Her debut poetry pamphlet Patchwork is published by Offa’s Press.  She’s performed her work around the West Midlands, London, Liverpool, Oswestry and via Skype to India. She was a guest lecturer at Humboldt […]

Naush Sabah is a writer and editor based in the West Midlands. She recently completed an MA in Creative Writing, with Distinction, and now works as a freelance writer and editor. Her short play, Coins, was staged at The Rep and longlisted for the Pint Sized Plays competition (2019). Heredity/ASTYNOME, a double micro-pamphlet box set, was published by […]

As a young artist/photographer, Finn Byrne‘s practice is ever-evolving in accordance with his knowledge of photography. He currently operate as a socially engaged documentary photographer who works to produce imagery surrounding and involving various communities within the region of the West Midlands, particularly the Birmingham area. By engaging personally within various communities, he is able […]

Brendan Hawthorne is a poet, playwright, writer and musician, based in the West Midlands. First published in 2004 by bluechrome he was described as being the ‘best Urban Poet of his time.’ He has since released four poetry collections and two plays via various publishers and has written seven titles of local interest for Bradwell Books. […]

Herbert Walters is a Birmingham based documentary photographer who completed his HND at Sandwell College followed by a degree at Birmingham City University, where he became an artist in residence.  He recently presented his exhibition ‘Vision of Moments’ at the Medicine Bakery & Gallery in Birmingham city centre and has shown his work at Heart Break Gallery, New York; SOAS University, London; Midlands Arts Centre; and The Drum Arts Centre, Birmingham.

Bhulla Beghal is a professional filmmaker from Smethwick. Having grown up amongst a manufacturing environment, making was deep-seated early on. Highlights from working in production include being a cinematographer for a feature documentary in Abu Dhabi and leading the art department for a documentary on the Suffragettes.

⁣Catherine Turner is a photographer and designer based in Rowley Regis, West Midlands. Focussing on street and documentary photography, Catherine’s work shares poignant snapshots of daily life and family stories in the Black Country and beyond.⁣⁣

Thea Brown grew up in Telford and spent much of her childhood involved with Telford Community Arts. She received her art training in Liverpool, Sheffield and Birmingham. Thea uses a variety of media - drawing, photography, performance and installation – to explore elements of femininity, hope and desire. She is currently based in Tipton and is Head of Art at a secondary school in West Bromwich.

Mark Murphy is an artist who works with collage. During the past eight years, alongside his design practice, Mark has enjoyed setting himself the challenge of making collage in a purely analogue way. Seeking out weird and wonderful print from the last 60 years his hand-cut, paper collages play with graphic composition, juxtaposition, space, scale and surrealism. Sometimes abstract, sometimes figurative, often humorous.

Steve Pottinger is a poet, author, and workshop facilitator, and a founding member of Wolverhampton arts collective Poets, Prattlers, and Pandemonialists.

Emma Purshouse is a freelance writer and performance poet. She is a poetry slam champion and performs regularly at spoken word nights and festivals far and wide, often using her native Black Country dialect in her work. Her appearances include, The Cheltenham Literature Festival, Ledbury Poetry Festival, Much Wenlock Poetry Festival, Solfest, The Edinburgh Fringe, […]