Coal Face is led by an award-winning creative team – Sunderland photographer Andy Martin and Middlesbrough writer Dr Louise Powell. The project uses a mixture of portrait photography, verbatim poetry and audio to preserve the stories of County Durham’s collieries through the faces and the words of the people who knew them best.
Andy and Louise have previously focused their project on the miners and mining families of the Washington area, preserving their stories through exhibitions at F-Pit Museum, two publications and a podcast.
The pair are now keen to speak to people with a connection to the following Sunderland collieries:
- Herrington Colliery
- Hylton Colliery
- Ryhope Colliery
- Silksworth Colliery
- Wearmouth Colliery
This connection may come in the form of working at one of the collieries, or having a loved one who did so. Whether this work was underground or in the canteens or offices, interested parties are invited to sign up to one of two free engagement sessions at the FANS Museum in North Bridge Street, Sunderland, between October 22-24, and at The Old Rectory, Houghton-le-Spring between November 6-7.
During these sessions, Andy will ask participants to sit for a photographic portrait, while Louise will invite them to be interviewed about their memories. The resulting interviews and portraits will form the basis of a 2025 exhibition at Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens, as well as a further publication, podcast series and community events.
The free exhibition will be at the museum from Saturday, February 1 to Saturday, March 15 – for more information, go to https://www.sunderlandculture.org.uk/whats-on/coal-face-sunderland/
The project is supported using public funding from Arts Council England and delivered in partnership with Sunderland Culture, The Cultural Spring, Redhills CIO and University College London.
The engagement sessions are free to sign up to and attend. Participants will be given a free print of their portrait, as well as a complimentary copy of the book.
To register interest in attending one of the engagement sessions or being part of the Coal Face project, please email coalfaceproject@gmail.com.
Alternatively, sign up online at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/coal-face-sunderland-engagement-sessions-tickets-1042650424487 for the FANS museum session or https://www.eventbrite.com/e/coal-face-houghton-le-spring-engagement-sessions-tickets-1048553932037 for the Houghton-le-Spring session.