Out and About in Kirklees: A psychogeographical study of Kirklees

Out and About in Kirklees: A psychogeographical study of Kirklees with the LGBT community

Professor Monro is Co-Investigator on a small study about LGBT identities and space, with Dr Tim Gomersall as PI, and Dr Alex Bridger and Dr Anna Howell as the other Co-Investigators. Psychogeography is an approach for analysing links between place, identity and experience. Although gender and sexuality play a central role in how we experience place, no psychogeographical work with LGBT people exists. The research question is: How do LGBT people living in Kirklees experience space and place?

Specific research objectives are:

1. To develop methods for analysing place from a LGBT perspective;

2. To collect LGBT people’s memories of the local area;

3. To understand what makes LGBT-friendly spaces and places;

4. To create a public exhibition of LGBT stories and memories of Kirklees and Manchester.

We examined local areas with up to 10 participants, working with local LGBT organisations to gather data on experiences of Kirklees. Psychogeographic strategies were used to creatively examine spaces and discuss environmental features, deliberately identifying unusual or emotive aspects of place. These strategies included: dice walking, site specific studies and using maps of other towns and cities as disorientational devices. We explored four areas including metropolitan, suburban, and rural spaces including Huddersfield, Batley, Holmfirth and Manchester Canal Street. Participant stories and photographs will be analysed by experienced researchers and artists, and informed by relevant theory. The public exhibition is now under preparation.

This project has received funding via a British Academy/Leverhulme small grant.