Factor Us In
Client: British Motor Museum

“Factor Us In” tells a nationally relevant story told through the lens of the regional communities who were at its centre. It expanded the museum’s offer and broadened its appeal while turning attention to an important aspect of social as well as industrial history.

 

The stories centre on the 1970s. An era that seems at the same time recent and distant. Viewed by some with nostalgia (the music, the fashions) and sometimes with horror (the music, the fashions!). It is a period with unmistakable style and character and events of the decade still have resonance today and directions taken then continue to shape society. Opinions and feelings around the issues can still be very raw and their representation needs to be sensitive as well as engaging and entertaining.

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The power of this exhibition is that the story is told with the voices of the people who were a part of it in the place where it happened. Telling the story from inside these communities is a process of conversation and debate that must continue after opening. Taking cues from works like “The Participatopry Museum” we  worked to create opportunities for visitors to bring their own stories.

 

Our approach was a simple one – to use the space to present the stories and the “world” of the people of the industry at the centre of things while the wider historical, social and political themes swirl around them.

 

The project was produced on a design build basis with Unusual Projects.

The walls of the space carried bill board like graphic murals using contemporary images to create surrounding context and a “soft chronology” that brought to life the sequence of events while avoiding being a plodding year by year timeline.

 

At the centre of the space stripped back, stylised sets conjured up the working, home and entertainment environments of the time where the drama between our characters can be played out.