Bella Smart

My work is a response to the statement: ‘It’s grim up north’. I explore the impact of deindustrialisation and government neglect on Northern England and my subsequent internal conflict between the quiet shame of where I’m from and the gradual acceptance of my heritage. I blend documentary style video work with material and spacial installations, using textures and settings associated with specific times and places, hoping to preserve whatever legacy and culture there is left. My hometown was once the ‘King of Cotton’ and with there now being nothing to show for it, I’ve seen first hand the long lasting effects of deindustrialisation and the urban decay its caused.