Millstream Way: There Was Nothing We Couldn't Do - Exhibited at Arts Quarter Budapest Hungary Jan 2027

Murray, Matthew ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8956-8062 (2027) Millstream Way: There Was Nothing We Couldn't Do - Exhibited at Arts Quarter Budapest Hungary Jan 2027. [Show/Exhibition]

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Abstract

In a strip of post-industrial wasteland on the edge of Birmingham, a child found a world of his own. Millstream Way is a deeply personal, experimental exploration of childhood memories, loss and grief, and of how photography can give access to experiences that have gone unremembered yet cannot be forgotten. At the heart of the project is Millstream Way itself: a former industrial site in Birmingham (since transformed into a vibrant nature reserve) where Matthew Murray spent much of his childhood. He found in it a space for play, adventure, and refuge. Later, following the loss of his mother when he was twelve, the site became something more. It engages throughout the work with the idea of the ‘secret garden’: both literally, as a hidden and neglected yet magical space for childhood adventure, and metaphorically, as a place of healing, self-discovery, and growth. In his photographic approach, Murray recalls his childhood adventures and grief through a personal and phenomenological lens, balancing the tension between loss and moments of play, absorption, and solace. The work blends digital and analogue techniques (photogravure, Polaroids, trail cameras, 3D printing, and moving image) and embraces experimentation, chance, and imperfection to reflect the freedom and unpredictability of childhood memory itself. The result is a body of work that is at once haunting and meditative. Situated within the traditions of landscape and documentary photography that explore memory and history through place, Millstream Way brings a distinctive working-class perspective to questions of loss, the picturesque, and the relationship between environment and inner life. The work also engages with contemporary interests in walking, play, and wellbeing as both artistic and emotional practices, and offers strong potential for public programming around themes of childhood memory, grief, and photographic experimentation. The exhibition is accompanied by a photo book of the same title, published by Elliott Gallery (2027). Millstream Way will be exhibited at Art Quarter Budapest, Hungary, from 15 January 2027.

Item Type:	Show/Exhibition
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Exhibition; Budapest; Documentary; photography; portrait; landscape; colour; black and white; alternative process; memory; Elliott Gallery; Amsterdam; The Netherlands
Related URLs:	Organisation
Related records:	Crawl & Walk
Subjects:	N Fine Arts > N Visual arts (General) For photography, see TR N Fine Arts > NC Drawing Design Illustration N Fine Arts > ND Painting N Fine Arts > NE Print media N Fine Arts > NX Arts in general S Agriculture > S Agriculture (General) S Agriculture > S Agriculture (General) > S589.75 Agriculture and the environment T Technology > TR Photography
Divisions:	Schools and Research Institutes > School of Arts, Culture and Environment
Depositing User:	Matthew Murray
Date Deposited:	26 Jun 2026 15:41
Last Modified:	26 Jun 2026 16:06
URI:	https://eprints.glos.ac.uk/id/eprint/16394

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