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Bus art marks Perry Barr’s 75th birthday!

11 Mar 2008

National Express West Midlands (formally Travel West Midlands) has teamed up with Birmingham-based arts group ecArts and the Voice of Aston Community Centre to deliver an innovative, one-of-a-kind, local arts project to celebrate their Perry Barr bus depot’s 75th birthday.

Helped by experienced fine arts professional, Martin Humphries, three young people from Aston have turned a blank, uninspiring wall in the Perry Barr canteen into a glorious artistic journey through the history of public transport in Birmingham - from the days when trams graced the streets of the city, through the 1930s and up to the modern day.

Jack Henry, Operations Director at National Express UK said; "The opportunity to work with youngsters from the Voice of Aston Community Centre to mark this great anniversary was a fantastic prospect for us, especially as the kids have achieve a bronze arts award, equivalent to a GCSE, through their hard work. The five finished murals look amazing and the reflect the huge effort that’s gone from the kids themselves and their mentor, artist Martin Humphries. This really is a unique way of celebrating and recording Perry Barr depot’s 75th birthday and will be seen and enjoyed by our staff and the community for many years to come."

Claire Farrell from ecArts added; "We were delighted to be involved with this project and were especially pleased to find such an enlightened company as National Express West Midlands who have fully taken on board the value of art in the work place and have given young people a fantastic kick-start to a future in the arts by offering them a great opportunity to achieve a prestigious Bronze arts award."

The Arts Award supports young people to develop as artists and arts leaders and is available throughout England. It is a nationally recognised qualification at three levels - Bronze, Silver and Gold. The initiative is supported by Arts Council England.

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