Dr. Keith Vernon talks of the meaning of Jan Chlebik’s ‘Preston Panoramas’

Jan Chlebik’s Preston Panorama Photograph exhibition is currently being held at the Museum of Lancashire in Preston.

On Sunday afternoon of the 28th April,  Dr Keith Vernon, the Principal Lecturer in History at UCLan, gave a talk explaining the concept of the panorama images and their meaning to the people of Preston in relation to the Preston  Guild 2012.

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The panoramic photographs are of people involved with clubs, institutions and social groups within Preston City, which together visually describe the great diversity of organisations and culture there.

Dr. Vernon talked of the Guilds of market towns and in particular the Preston Guild, and how even today the Guilds have an effect on people, their work and the rich cultures within the city. he also pointed out notable features of some of the 70 or so panorama images to indicate the uniqueness of the various groups of people in the city and the cohesion between them brought about by the Guild celebrations.

Manchester-based photographer Jan Chlebik produced panoramic images in the early days of photography and his fascination with them prompted him to conceive the idea of panoramas for Preston people; he thought that it would be “great to resurrect that idea and do it in today’s modern world“.

With the valuable assistance of creative agency Dovetail, who bring together artists and organisations, Jan worked with the organisers of Preston Guild 2012 to create the ‘Panorama of Preston’ exhibition.

The exhibition is open until 19th May 2013 at the Museum of Lancashire.

Review by Paul D. Swarbrick & Gillian A. Lawson

Photograph image by Gillian A. Lawson.