A portrait of a city through its people

Shannen Headley
BBC News, West Midlands
Graham Stubbs A man is standing in front of a gallery of pictures of different people with short text boxes next to them. The man is wearing a purple zip up sweater top. Graham Stubbs
Graham Stubbs says he wants to show what the city means to its residents

A photographer from Wolverhampton has created an exhibition celebrating the people of the city.

Graham Stubbs said he began the "We are Wolverhampton" portraits project to share something positive about the city, revealing what living there meant to its residents.

The exhibition will be on display at the city's Central Library from 28 April to 10 May.

A small selection of images is also on show in K Teas Cakes cafe on St George's Parade, while a pop-up gallery has been planned in the 01902 Urban Rooms on Queen Square in December.

Graham Stubbs A black and white image of a side profile of a woman smiling. She is wearing a black dress, with a necklace. Her hair is in a low bun. She is sitting inside a cafe.Graham Stubbs
A portrait of Caty, who runs K Teas cakes, is in the exhibition, and others images are on display in her shop

Mr Stubbs told the BBC he was "saddened that Wolverhampton doesn't always have a great name".

"I wanted to do something positive to show these wonderful individuals and talk about what the city means to them," he said. "I hope that in a small way it will encourage some more dialogue and understanding in the city."

So far, more than 30 people have been photographed for the project, which has been under way for a year and is open-ended and still taking on participants.

Mr Stubbs said: "I came to Wolverhampton about 10 years ago, and now it feels like home.

"I spent some of that time working for Citizens Advice, and I'm also very involved in the local art scene. This has allowed me to meet many wonderful people and see different sides of the city.

"I am doing this because I want to show different people with different takes on the city in a positive way."

Graham Stubbs Two men are sitting inside a mosque. The room has a blue patterned carpet with beige curtains in the background. Both men are sitting on chairs. The man on the left has his hands on his lap and is wearing a black jacket, black jeans, a blue jumper and a white shirt. The man on the right has his legs crossed and is wearing black socks, blue jeans, a navy jumper and a blue collared shirt. Graham Stubbs
A portrait from the exhibition of Abrar and Khalid, who represent the UKIM Madina Masjid & Islamic Centre on New Hampton Road

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