UPDATE: Please take the time to read our announcement. Ristorante Café Arena is open as normal.
During the late 1800s, night soil men and lamplighters worked throughout the night for the Corporation of Birmingham (a precursor to the local council) and both used the Roundhouse as a base for their work.
These professions provided inspiration for our understanding of the roles, experiences, and perceptions of local night shift workers, then and now.
Through research and artist commissions, this display investigated opinions about the people who go to work whilst we are asleep to keep the city going.
The exhibition featured newly commissioned work by:
Christian Asare
Olivier Jamin
Ahsen Sayeed
Beth Bennett
Ryan Hart
Space_Play
Our We Don’t Settle curators and researchers were:
Ellis Winter
Raveena Kaur
Rahma Mohammed
Umar Sujad
Sampira Al-Fihri
This exhibition was created through a partnership between Roundhouse Birmingham and We Don’t Settle which aims to empower young people of colour from Birmingham and the Black Country to change the voice of heritage through the arts, research, and governance.
Header image by Ahsen Sayeed
You can view artwork from the exhibition online. Click the button below.
The Roundhouse, 1 Sheepcote St, Birmingham, B16 8AE
0121 716 4077
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Registered Charity No. 1169232
Since 2021, the Roundhouse has also been a base for guided walks, kayak tours, boat trips and other activities. Whilst these have been well received, rising external costs mean this element of Roundhouse Birmingham is no longer providing the sustainable income we need to fund the ongoing care of this historic building. For this reason, we’ve made the difficult decision to close the leisure activity offer and visitor centre.
The office spaces will remain open as usual. Visitors can still access the site (see www.arenaltd.co.uk for opening hours) and Ristorante Caffe Arena will continue to welcome visitors.
We’re hugely proud of what the Roundhouse Birmingham team has achieved, and we’d also like to thank all of our visitors for their support. The trustees of Roundhouse Birmingham remain fully committed to caring for this important part of Birmingham’s heritage.
