2

The Blind Eye Magazine is created by our group

‘We 5’The magazine is about broadeining your

mind around the city of Birmingham. There is maybe

a chance that becasue there is so much going on that

you may not notice something which is there you just

do not know about it yet. The roles in our group belong

to

Editor/Designer - Steven Hoang & Ricky

Photographer - Beth Clark/Steven Hoang/Ricky

Illustrator - Beth Clarke

Animator/Ident - Neil Bunce

Video - Steven Hoang

Credicts go to the group for there support/contribution

into the making of the magazine.

3

What is Blind Eye Magazine about?

The Blind eye magazine is about looking at Birmingham in a different perspective.

We look at areas where people would not usually read about they would show a blind eye towards it. Some places they choose to ignore possibly due to it’s reputation judg-ing it by what they may have heard from others opinion.

The magazine approaches the target audience who are tourists visiting Birmingham from abroad but more im-portantly local people in Birmingham reeducating them on places aspects they may have not heard of.

The two features we got in the magazine is of MADWEW a street artist who Ricky interviewed and there was also time for a small section of our Blind Eye stickers to get featured in the magazine. At first there was a lot of themes but we would not be able to uncover everything about Bir-mingham in one magazine. So we narrowed it down to what was best to feature in the magazine.

We 5 The contenet involved with the magazine is looking at these 3 themes which consists of Buildings Street Art Places Travel.

We hope you enjoy reading the magazine and our ident/video is embeeded with the magazine too for you to view on our outgoings.

Contents

Features Candy Store Page 8Sticker Bomb Project Page 28Street artPage 16

IntroduCtIon to Street art Page 18

IntervIew wIth the Madvew Page 15

BrIndley PlaCe Page 24travelPage 30

Have a Look Inside

Blind Eye Magazine

4 5

6 7

8

when you got something that is evovlving itself as respected and hot and

anticipated like this it’s worth putting in teh effect to feature it in the maagzine to promote this store even further. Although there are many other well known stores that attract stronger sleas and clothing range from the likes of street chain J.D Sports you start to think how do other stores stand a chance of a store like that. The candy store is a new coming store that is strongly different the major stores in Bimringham. What is special about Candy store is it’s originated firstly in Birmingham. I’ve always hought to myself JD Sports is very repitive it doesent necessary offer anything that is strkingly different from everything it offers in the apparent exclsuisve range. I can walk into other sports clothing stores and find teh exact or similar trainer that resembles last years range.

I had a browse through the other day and the first thing that came to mind was how I have never been her before. Just browsing down the range you think to yourself it is really cool her I must say there clothing range is exactly what intreast me and to purshue that look. What-ever look I was going for they had it here. Going into JD there was always a thpught in your mind that whatever you buy her one it going to be expensive and there will be atleast 4 people you would see at college wearing the ex-act same thing. There is no worry of that happenig here with there offerings here alot more casual one thing is for sure I know where I’ll be buying my clothes from now on.Thee is definalty ssomething about achieveing the more mature look her that I’m after JD sports is facing some major compitition in the future.

The thing is if you think streopically about candy store you may think it’s nothing different your local pick & mix store.

The candy store is a new coming store that is strongly different the major stores in Bimring-ham.

9

Candy Store Interview

10 11

12 13

15

Street Art

MuralsMurals is any artwork that is drawn/painted or applied directly to any large surface usually used on ceilings and side of house and any other large places.

Sticker BombingA predesigned sticker which can be used for recognition, promotion or mes-sage of the artist.Tool used: spray paints, magazines, photographs of work, paint masks, etch-ing items,

Socio-political Targeted comment from a writer on social issues or the political environ-ment.

Hip Hop or Wild Styleusually stands out with many colours and the size of it done in bubble or three

Stencil Designed stencil which is used to spray over to leave the mark of the stencil

Skateboard Like taggers got their own language that will be recognised by peers and people in the field

Eulogy Graffiti in memory of your loved ones and peers

Street ArtWhat it is all about

Graffiti is considered illegal, there are some art-ists that can start as illegal street artist and go into self employed artist who sell their art. One of these artists is Shepard Fairey who works for Obey Giant and first known for his “Andre the Giant Has a Posse” piece. From street artist to now best known for his “Hope” poster of Ba-rack Obama

18 19

Buildings

I can mention some of the lastest deveopments that Birmingham is envolved with although alot of the buildings are being redeveloped it is with the intention of the intreast in future. I for one am excited by what to expect how Bir-mingham will have changed in the next 5 years. Some of the redevelopments are exciting form the likes of New street station which travellers use everyday to commute to and from Birmingham. Then there’s the new location of Bir-mingham City University it was one of teh reasons that made my decisions to study there a university that is alwyas building for the future.Thens there’s the Birmingham Libruary which already looks magnificient and will surely be a building that is seen from around teh world. I have lived in Birmingham all my life it is a city with so much history and I’m pround to be a part of it.

Birmingham is a city that is pro-gressing towads the future. Let

me tell you there is a mixture of build-ings both new and old that makes up the city. There is so much diversity between new and old. For me the most intresting is how much history exist in some of the buildings. It saddens me that with all the talk of new develop-ments involving the apprarent transfor-mation of Birmingham new station the historic buildins sourounding Birming-ham are making to be demolished. Others would agree the history of these buildings strech far back in the past they way htye were made, represent-ing Birminghams famous industry and landmarks. But all is not lost what Birmingham did in the past is to make way for a more modern city for the future. But one things for certain Birmingham is moving forward to established itself as a popular city to visit

20 21

Birmingham has been undergoing a radical change the majority of the city centre is now pedestrianized, and the canals cleaned up to make for attractive walkways. Locals credit the City Council for the recent transformation, as the city retains its industrial heritage while now appearing alot more modern

22 23

24 25

Sticker Bomb

Blind Eye Sticker ProjectIf you spotted one of these stickers plastered around Birmingham then you will have discovered it’s purpose while reading this magazine. The features in the magazine we posted a sticker at it’s location for our readers.

If you clcik on the thumbnail ahead A video for our Blind Eye magazine project will play. As a group we went around Birmingham putting up the stickers to promote our magazine. The idea is each sticker represents an

area, place, building which is featured in the magazine. The video was re-corded on a Nikon D5000 and edited in Adobe Premiere Pro.

Much thanks to Ricky Riddlez Zaharāns and Neil Bunce for their help in the making of this video the video would not be what it is now without there help and ideas into the production of the blind eye maga-zine. into the video. This is our own version our interprestation of street

art without breaking any rules and in this day & age it’s smart and inova-tive design. For the sticker we had to consider it’s design not too flashy but subtile and had a clean appearence.

We stuck some stickers in places that represent Birmingham that we felt would contribute to the magazine in places like Digbeth, Brindley place what you see in the Blind Eye maga-zine I can garentee there is a sticjer there.

To do something different for the magazine while taking photographs at the same

time.

‘We went around Birmingham putting up the stickers to promote our magazine’

26 27

The transport system in Birmingham is one of the many ways to travel around the city of Bimingham. You name it Train, Bus, Tram, Coach it is easily accesable. Just a fflick of your smartphone and you can find out time-tables, booking and sort out tickets it is all avalible in the 21st centruy. There is even the mention of the use of the canels along Birminghams vast network if you fancy travelling in the old fashioned way.

The west midlands bus service has seen some major sevice changes over the past year. Having personally used the bus service on a daily basis to comute to university I have seen a major improvementsin how the service operates. In a vast area such asBirmingham it is importent for people to have a broad choice of where they are to travel and the method of trans-port they intend to use. . The canal network can be accessed in the city centre from the Broad Street/Gas Street area, or at most road cross-ings elsewhere. The towpath is generally well-maintained to within a few miles of the city, and after that tends to be packed earth with plenty of mud and embedded bricks.Birmingham’s city centre is partially pedestrianised and has several unintuitive one-way systems. A car is a viable way of getting around the city and other areas, but a good map or sat-nav is essential when travelling around.

Travel28

29

Coming into the city from the country side is like falling down the rabbit role and been transported to another world, the rolling hills and greenery are replaced by rolling traffic and an attractive grey colour of concrete which as you explore more becomes adorned with art, temporary on decaying walls and metal signs giving it an new lease of life, like the changing of the seasons.

Unlike alice I do not arrive in wonderland through a magic door, I first must take a bus on which you see the most fantastical creatures. The bus zips through the winding roads cloaked in trees, squeezing through narrow lanes until you are out in the open air with animals grazing on the fields as you pass and farms becoming a blur as they make way for more industrial estates with crying children and gossiping mums on the school run.

As they disembark they are replaced with the profes-sions in sharp suits with their takeaway coffees from chains mixing in with the old ladies going to the mar-kets and shoppers wanting to get into the city for when the shops open. A student plays music loudly at the back of the bus making the woman taking a phone call speak louder until they are in competition with each other as to who is more annoying.

Outside the bus the traffic thickens as attractions leading up to the city are signposted and then you are in competition with black cabs and early morning commuters as they race into the city as it gets nearer. Upon arrival everyone piles off and turn in different directions racing around turning a blind eye to things in plain sight.

I find myself carrying the city home with me after i have finished exploring, i take away the things i discovered, the sounds i heard and the images of the people i saw all in a paper cup of a take-away coffee and the bus ticket in my pocket.

31

Restaurants: Around the World in 80 Dishes, Bank, Café Ikon, Café Rouge, Carluccio’s, Chilacas, Cielo, City Café, Edmunds, Hand-made Burger Co, Piccolino, Pizza Express, Thai Edge, Tin Tin and Wagamama

Cafes and Bars: All Bar One, Ba-guette du Monde, Bank Bar, Costa Coffee, EAT, Nuvo, Pitcher and Piano and The Slug and Lettuce

For such a (relatively) large population centre there is alot to explore in the city

PLACES

There are small parks and green spaces all over the city and suburbs, and the countryside is only about thirty minutes away in any direction. The country parks and nature reserves usually contain a wealth of information about local flora, fauna and conservation efforts.The live music scene in Birmingham is vibrant and varied, and something can be experienced just about any night of the week. Li-braries, tourist information offices and music-related bars and shops will stock copies of The Fly or “Ryan’s Gig Guide” free publications with exhaustive listings of every music event going on in the city and surrounding

There is a wealth of places to explore in Birmingham with a vast multi cul-tural city has plenty to explore. There is something for everyone here. List of places to visit in the area:Leisure: The Crescent Theatre, Ban-natynes Health Club, The National Sea Life Centre and Ikon Gallery, Retail: Boots, Ethos, EAT, Ethos, Places, Spar, Number Nine Gallery and Sainsbury’s LocalHotels: Hilton Garden Inn, SACO@Livingbase,

3332