Martin Jones scoops civic award
Martin Jones, from Sedgley, has scooped the Cedric Hardwicke Award for Arts runner up prize for his work as a volunteer at the Dudley Archives and Local History Centre.
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He received his award from the Mayor of Dudley, Councillor Hilary Bills, as part of this year’s Civic Awards.
For the last three years, Martin has been scanning, photographing and cataloguing more than 1,200 individual items documenting the public art career of the Dudley Borough’s Artist, Steve Field, as part of the Dudley Borough Artist (DBA) database.
The DBA collection includes a wealth of details about the Abraham Darby Memorial Steve created on Birmingham Road, and Pegasus, the legendary winged horse from Greek mythology, on Scott’s Green Island.
As well as working on that database, Martin has deposited 1,500 of his own photographs, collectively entitled Zulu Dawn Street Art (DZD), to chronicle the emergence of the UK’s hip hop scene and street art as a form of expression in the 1980s.
At the time, Martin was managing predominantly Midlands-based acts like the ‘Wolverhampton B Boys’ and dancer and artist Goldie (Clifford Joseph Price). Some of Martin’s images have since been used in TV documentaries and in major street art exhibitions at the Saatchi Gallery and Worcester Museum.
Operating under the Better brand, GLL is the not-for-profit social enterprise that runs Dudley Archives on behalf of Dudley Council.
“We’re very grateful to Martin for the significant contribution he’s making to Dudley’s historical records, and we’re delighted to see him receive such a well-deserved civic award,” said Archivist Hannah Clynes.
“Thanks to his efforts, both the DBA and DZD collections are available for request in our search room.”
For more information, contact Dudley Archives and Local History Service on 01384 812770.
