I hadn’t been particularly struck by the outside of the building, but now I’ve been inside I see the external fabric in a much more forgiving light. The interior is completely unrecognisable to anyone who was familiar with the building before: it’s light and airy, has a lot more public space, is wheelchair accessible and has lifts to the upper levels; there’s free wifi throughout, big windows with fabulous views of the park, movable seating in the theatre, a fantastic gallery space… I could go on and on.

We were even given samples of the food, which was amazing; I forgot to photograph it, but essentially it was high quality canapes. I expressed a concern that the food has upped its game too far, and out of the comfort zone and pocket of most people; I often used to go to the mac precisely because I could get no-nonsense grub – stew, fish and chips, lasagne – for three or four quid. I was assured though that the menu is still in that price bracket, but more inviting.

I also hadn’t realised how close to the budget they were, with only a fraction still to raise. And I’m told that apart from the setback of a few months when they discovered that the lido underneath the building was still there and needed removing, the project was delivered on schedule.

I took a load of photos (on my iphone I’m afraid) which you can flick through here:

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The ‘Flash Swap’ was the group’s first publicity event, intended to raise the profile of their campaign for a dedicated photography gallery in Birmingham.

Although hidden away in a dark corner of the Custard Factory, it was well attended. All the walls of the spacious gallery were adorned with photographs brought along by the visitors.

The exhibition grew throughout the day as people brought along their photographs. Then at five-thirty Patrick Wilcox, founder of Birmingham Photospace, gave an introduction and started the swap.

We had all been given one sticker for each photo that we’d brought, and could use these to claim photos of a similar size and quality from someone else. Although there were reports of people removing stickers or covering someone else’ with their own, most people behaved themselves.

I came away with three photographs: ‘Luminarium‘ by Julia Gilbert, which was taken inside an exhibition at Birmingham’s ArtsFest; ‘Mondrian was here‘ by George Daley, taken behind Five Ways shopping centre in Birmingham; ‘Crazy Paving’, also by George Daley, taken outside The Public in West Bromich. (The former two are displayed on this page.)

I took a few for swapping. I know the two of my cat Pepper were claimed, and I think the one of the deck chairs may have been too (all three are displayed on this page).

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