Mark Henderson – The Concert Room: Steels Social Club Residency

WMCs were once an integral social and cultural institution at the heart of working class communities throughout the UK and in many the Concert Room would be at the fulcrum of the social interaction. When Mark Henderson began to photograph Concert Rooms in clubs in the north east of England, he was initially drawn to their unique aesthetic but soon found an alternative narrative based on the birthdays parties, engagements, weddings, christenings and wakes, as well as numerous other social events, the intimate personal and collective memories of which are contained within the walls of each concert room.

Mark’s Concert Room project is part of an ongoing exploration into his own social and cultural heritage and as part of the festival he will be developing the themes and ideas in new ways. Some Concert Rooms are impressive affairs comprising a huge stage, a state of the art lighting rig and sound system and enormous dance floors, and while others have retained their original charm, some have sadly fell into disrepair. Ten images from the Concert Room series have been reproduced onto a series of beer mats to be used and enjoyed during The Social.  For a week in November, Mark will also be taking up a residency in the Concert Room of Steels Club, which was established in the 50s and is one of Sunderland’s most popular and longest running social clubs.  During this time he will explore the social and cultural history of the Concert Room as a unique space for social engagement, looking at the past, present and future uses of the room.

Working with both photography and video the exploration will comprise a series of portraits and video interviews featuring a wide and varied cross section of the community that have a cultural/social connection to the space, to provide an insight into the lives that have been played out within the room.

The residency at the Steels Club will take place from Wednesday 6th November until 13th November with a presentation of the findings as a work in progress on the morning of Friday 15th November, in Steels Club concert room.

http://markhenderson.info/

In residence: 6November – 13 November 2013
Social morning: Friday 15 November 2013, 11.00-1.00pm.

Steels Social Club, 1 Peacock Street West, Sunderland, SR4 6LQ