Jeremy Deller’s ‘Procession'

When initially presenting my proposal I was tipped to Jeremy Deller who was involved in a project called Procession which was part of Manchesters international festival in 2009. There was a parade show casing what he believed Manchester was about. The different types of people that made Manchester what it is and showed the diversity that one of the major cities in the UK has.

"From Big Issue sellers to boy racers, people from all over the city paraded through the city for Jeremy Deller's Procession at the Manchester international festival, in a fond and playful celebration of the city's past and present" 

The parade involved a section at the back dedicated to 'boy racers' who drove in convoy in the parade with there music playing etc. I'm unsure if this was a positive or a step backwards?

"Revving behind are the local boy racers, sound systems booming. They are the crew that speed round the back of the Stockport Toys R Us carpark on a Thursday night, and not everyone is pleased. James Clayden, 79, says: "All those fumes – it's enough to kill the smell of the fish and chips. We're supposed to be thinking about the environment."

The stigma around people involved with modifying cars is that written above is something that I disagree with greatly. When most people see a young male driving a modified car, they would think he and his friends congregate in a car  park late at night and race around. Maybe 10 years ago this was the case. However I think it's a bit time this stereotype was erased from society because in reality anyone who spend 10 minutes with any real car enthusiast will realise they take pride in there car and there driving. Of course some people do spoil it for the majority but on the whole the modified community are a well behaved bunch. There are hundreds of organised events each year for real enthusiasts and this is where they go, they don't sit in car parks revving there engines and causing hassle! If people wan't to put there cars to the test and race there are fully legal track days such as the one I'm planning to visit at Santa Pod Raceway next week. 

Hopefully I'll get some good images that show people from all walks of life attend organised events and have a genuine interested for modifying cars.

(http://www.flickr.com/photos/hickstersunited/5631002960/)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2009/jul/05/jeremy-deller-procession-manchester-festival