What does *your* town need? [Apart from the obvious stuff, like fezzes.]

Hi there. 

Is there something missing from your town/city? Do you ever catch yourself saying "Why don't we have ..."? or "If only we had a ....". 

Last night, at a late night opening at mima gallery, we came across a pin board asking just that question about our region. 

Why not see if you can find common ground with any of the respondents? Maybe your area could do with some of these too ... 

So far, so admirable. 'Love', 'no drugs', 'independent cinema', 'more tea shops', 'bees' ... nothing to argue with there. 

Same here with 'better housing', 'more money spent on it', 'ice cream & a jive group' and 'a printmaking studio': 

Regarding that last point - about the need for a print room - I like how someone's replied beneath it giving the address of place that has one! [The Navigator North Studios where I attended the book-binding workshop I blogged about earlier this year.] Nice to see a conversation - and a useful one at that - continuing on the board.

The next is a poignant one. Your region may not need this, but ours does. And, until this week, it had some:

After 170 years of steel-making in the area, the final steel plant closed down with a loss of over 2000 jobs. It's all still very raw. It's not surprising to find it featured here.

The same can't be said for the next suggestion that caught my eye ... clearly there was a Dr.Who fan who couldn't wait to get this one of their chest:

'Fezzes shops, fezzes, fezzes everywhere! #DrWho.'

OK, you may not feel your town needs fezzes to quite that extent ... but I bet you could get on board with this next one ...

Admit it, there's a narwhal shaped hole in your city-life isn't there [and it's an interestingly shaped hole at that.]

And finally ... I like the confidence, the ego, the unabashed certainty of this one:

After all you may complain about it ...

... you may wish it had this, that and the other.

And fezzes.

But, when it comes down to it, if your town has any chance of ever having any of those things, of ever improving, expanding, securing investment, providing for its people ...

... it really does need you to believe in it first. The rest can follow.

But tell me ... apart from you [and tea rooms and narwhals. Obviously. They're taken as read.] ... what does your town need? 


Julie

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[As a side note - I'm guessing that this question feeds into mima's Localism exhibition which focuses on the history and creativity of the area, which is well worth a visit if, you're one of those people who has always wished the gallery would focus on local themes. I'm not particularly in that camp - I really love that it's attracted world-wide artists too - but I know people who would prefer a local slant and so, if that's what you've been waiting for ... it's there now, now go and see it!].