Bata-ville

Wildly inspired by this:



'Bata-ville is a bittersweet record of a coach trip to the origins of the Bata shoe empire in Zlin in the Czech Republic. Against the backdrop of regeneration in their local communities, former employees of the now-closed UK shoe factories in East Tilbury (Essex) and Maryport (Cumbria) are led on a journey that begins as a free holiday but soon becomes an opportunity for a collective imagining of what entrepreneur Tomas Bata's maxim "We are not afraid of the future" means for them in 21st century Britain. Inspired by the contrast between the idealism of Bata and the more recent industrial decline of East Tilbury and Maryport, host / directors Pope & Guthrie lead this unorthodox coach party on a journey through Bata's legacy.'



The artists, Karen Guthrie and Nina Pope, are shortlisted for the Northern Art Prize and have created an installation (centered around an extraordinary film).

Armed with no prior knowledge of the project (and having never heard of Tomas Bata), as I was pouring over all this carefully collated memorabilia and watching this charming documentary, I began to doubt whether it was real. The thought crossed my mind that Tomas Bata could just be a character the artists had invented; an expression of that moment in time, before utopias became something to be afraid of, and optimism something to be scorned. Interestingly, the person I went with had independently arrived at a similar position of distrust.

We were completely wrong of course, but I'm fascinated by my reaction. I loved the piece when I thought it might be pure fiction. It didn't feel insincere, but it felt too...idealistic yet knowing, to be real. Which of course is down to the way Guthrie and Pope have dealt with their subject. The fact that we have such doubts and suspicions seems to say a lot about where we are now - and the importance of context. If it hadn't been a art gallery then I very much doubt I would have gone off on this bizarre sceptical journey. So does that mean I expect art to spin untruths?

So many questions about this that I can't even frame. I mean, how unrealistic was the Bata's vision? And if it was reasonable then how do we cope with the failure - our failure....?



And the funniest thing? My instant 'check' for 'proof' and reassurance was to tap the name into Google. Because if it doesn't show up in google then it's not real...