The biggest
ever collection of memorabilia spanning two decades of Paul Weller’s career –
‘This Is The Modern World’, launches in its spiritual home of Brighton next
year from 29th July and runs through until 2nd September 2022.
Situated in
Valley Gardens at the heart of a city which was the location featured on the
cover artwork of seminal Jam album ‘Setting Sons’ and made legendary by the
1979 cult film ‘Quadrophenia’.
A must see
exhibition for fans of The Jam, The Style Council and of course Paul Weller,
music aficionados and those curious of the lifestyle. This huge collection of
rare, mainly unseen material and fan memorabilia, will be accompanied by
performances from bands from the Mod revival era, film screenings, Q&A’s
and guided tours.
In a pop-up
location on Valley Gardens with a modernist bar and a selection of street and
locally sourced food. This will create a month-long place of homage for Mods,
fans of The Jam and The Style Council and lovers of UK culture in general.
The
exhibition takes its title from The Jam’s second studio album released 45 years
ago in 1977 and charts the trio’s journey from Woking to superstardom until
their split six years later. The band achieved 18 consecutive UK top 40 singles
and over 14 million global album sales, before passing into the era of The
Style Council – with an additional room of never-seen-before memorabilia.
The personal
archives of Paul Weller, Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler, the Weller family, Mick
Talbot and Steve White from The Style Council and those of devoted Weller fans
worldwide, all have shared their extensive collections for this show.
Curated by
Nicky Weller, Paul’s sister and former head of The Jam’s fan club, ‘This Is The
Modern World’ takes the visitor on a journey of underground youth culture
moving into the mainstream. Discover hand-written lyrics, original stage
outfits, personal photographs, rare footage, unreleased music videos, early
scrapbooks, letters, postcards, posters, fanzines, and each band’s instruments
– it’s a completest’s dream.
Nicky Weller
commented, “We want the fans to be involved in this exhibition and to include
their memories and special items from The Jam days and will be curating a new
area of the exhibition to showcase these. Anyone interested, please do get in
touch with pictures of what you would like to include in the exhibition –
exhibit@abouttheyoungidea.co.uk”.
Expect to
wander through an Underground station to witness the band’s formative years in
the ‘Stanley Road room’, including Paul’s own school books and archive family
photos from the early years. Each room will reveal iconic items from every year
of the band’s career with the ultimate vinyl collection. Together with a mass
of memorabilia and the band’s instruments, including Paul’s iconic Whaaam!
guitar and stunning mod-wear flanked by customised Jam scooters.
The
exhibition will be designed in reference to album artworks and will feature
original graphics from celebrated artist Anthony Burrill and exclusive images
from the archive of photographer Martyn Goddard. Providing a unique and
personal vision into The Jam’s trailblazing life and the retrospect legacy The
Jam left on music, style, politics and culture.
Elements of
this exhibition were previously shown on a smaller-scale at Somerset House,
London in 2015 and the Cunard Building in Liverpool 2016. Since then, the
collection has expanded with generous contributions from fans and collectors
around the world.
Nicky Weller
comments, “If you’re a Paul Weller fan there’s every single thing you can
possibly imagine, if you’re not a fan it’s still interesting as far as social
history goes. If you’re just a music fan it’s just a noisy fun exhibition”.
She
continues, “I’m so excited that we will be taking ‘This Is The Modern World’ to
Brighton this year with the biggest collection of Jam memorabilia on show- just
a stone’s throw from the last ever live gig at the Brighton Centre, forty years
ago in 1982″.
This Is The
Modern World is the most comprehensive exhibition about The Jam and The Style
Council. Produced by AGMP and sponsored by Visit Brighton – it is the ultimate
exhibition for memorabilia lovers.
‘This Is The Modern World’
29th July –
3rd September 2022, Valley Gardens, St Peter’s Place Brighton BN2 9QB
Exhibition open daily from 11-7pm. Evening entertainment and special events, food and drink only from 7pm-11pm.
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