It isn’t often that you see a bus stop and think: wow, that is totally freakin’ spectacular. Yet have a look at the above bus shelter in Birmingham, which has been glammed up as part of a community project. It’s pretty dazzling, right?
And it’s not the only shelter in the city to have been given an arty makeover. Seven bus stops along Soho Road in north-west Birmingham have been transformed into kaleidoscopic artworks, with each one designed to illustrate and celebrate the area’s diverse communities and history.
The project, which covers stops for the number 74 route between Dudley and Birmingham, is called On Our Way. It shows how communities have changed in the area over the years, even if the bus route hasn’t.
Each shelter tells a different story, ranging from the arrival of the area’s post-WWII migrant entrepreneurs to its civil rights heroes. They were designed by a whole range of local people, including some schoolchildren and staff from the local library. All the designs are really striking and beautiful – just take a look at these lot:
As a project, you really get the feeling like the whole community got involved – and in fact, it kind of did. On Our Way was created as a joint effort between local theatre China Plate, Birmingham Hippodrome, Soho Road Business Improvement District and National Express West Midlands. It’s all part of the city-wide Birmingham 2022 Festival, which is a six-month-long programme showcasing the area’s cultural sector.
Keen to find out more? Well, you can read more about On Our Way on the official website here.
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