Coventry: Hidden in Plain Sight
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Courtesy of It's All About Coventry |
Warwick University Graduate and member of staff in the Estates Office, Clare Selley, has had her first book published, “Coventry: Hidden in Plain Sight”. The book is an exploration in pictures of the hidden side of Coventry – the art, architecture and sites of historical interest that many people walk past on a daily basis without fully appreciating.
Clare moved to Coventry from Chester in 2001 to study at the University of Warwick and graduated in 2004 with a BSc Hons in Computer Science. She returned to Warwick University in 2007 as a member of staff and currently works in the Estates Office. Since moving to Coventry Clare has grown to appreciate its rich tapestry of history and culture. The book is the result of her combined passions for photography and local history.
The book contains over 300 photographs of various features of the city along with captions checked by Coventry historian David McGrory. From the new St. Michael’s Cathedral, to the undercroft of the original St Mary’s Priory, including modern sculpture to worn stonework. The book would serve as a great guide to the historical side of the city for both tourists and residents.
Clare purchased her first professional camera just a year ago and has taken around 10,000 pictures in total. In April 2009, Clare took part in the BBC’s My Coventry Project
which aimed to show Coventry’s new chief executive Martin Reeves, the good and bad around the city. Clare then decided to take part in Solo Photo Book Month where you create an entire online book in just a month. When she had completed the book her work colleagues encouraged her to get it published.
Clare said: “I never thought I’d get published, if you’d told me a year ago, I’d have laughed having only brought the camera in August! But I’m glad I have as it means I can share the bits of Coventry that I’ve discovered with everyone else.”
Coventry: Hidden in Plain Sight, priced £16.99 and published by Breedon Books, is available to buy at Coventry Tourist Information Centre, Waterstones, Borders and The University Of Warwick Bookshop. The book is also available to buy online at Amazon.
Clare will be signing copies of the book at 12pm on Saturday 7 November at the Ricoh Borders.
Find out more
See more photos on Clare’s Flickr site
Buy "Coventry: Hidden in Plain Sight" from Amazon
