Custard Factory
Encyclopedia
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Located on the redeveloped site of the Bird's Custard
Bird's Custard
Bird's Custard is the original version of what is known generically as custard powder. It is a cornflour -based powder which thickens to form a custard-like sauce when mixed with milk and heated to a sufficient temperature...
factory in the industrial district of Digbeth
Digbeth
Digbeth is an area of Birmingham, England. Following the destruction of the Inner Ring Road, Digbeth is now considered a district within Birmingham City Centre. As part of the Big City Plan, Digbeth is undergoing a large redevelopment scheme that will regenerate the old industrial buildings into...
, it is home to a community of businesses, primarily with an artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
ic and media
Mass media
Mass media refers collectively to all media technologies which are intended to reach a large audience via mass communication. Broadcast media transmit their information electronically and comprise of television, film and radio, movies, CDs, DVDs and some other gadgets like cameras or video consoles...
slant, but also including entertainment venues and regional offices of national charitable organisations. They include the Medicine Bar
Medicine Bar
The Medicine Bar in Birmingham, England started as a collaboration in the 1990s between the London Medicine bar and local hip hop DJ 'Simon Fat Head', who began his career at the legendary 'Brothers and Sisters' at the 'Coast to Coast' club on Broad Street....
, Punch Records
Punch Records
Punch Records is UK's premier Music & Arts development agency - It produces concerts, festivals, tours and innovative educational & outreach programmes for young people-History:...
, Fused Magazine
Fused Magazine
Fused Magazine is an art, design, music and fashion magazine based in Birmingham, England and distributed throughout the United Kingdom.It is published bi-monthly and distributed through both free and paid-for channels...
and the Tindal Street Press
Tindal Street Press
Tindal Street Press is a Birmingham-based independent publisher of contemporary literary fiction, with a particular focus on writers born, or living, in Birmingham and the West Midlands...
, and the Birmingham branches of the National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
, the Press Association
Press Association
The Press Association is the national news agency of the United Kingdom and Ireland, supplying multimedia news content to almost all national and regional newspapers, television and radio news, as well as many websites with text, pictures, video and data content globally...
, Royal Town Planning Institute
Royal Town Planning Institute
The Royal Town Planning Institute is a body representing planning professionals in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. It was founded in 1914.-Members:...
, Terrence Higgins Trust
Terrence Higgins Trust
Terrence Higgins Trust is a British charity that campaigns on various issues related to AIDS and HIV. In particular, the charity aims to reduce the spread of HIV and promote good sexual health ; to provide services on a national and local level to people with, affected by, or at risk of...
, and Prince's Trust. The project was set up by Bennie Gray.
Development
The Custard Factory complex is set in five acreAcre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
s (20,000 m²) of factory buildings, originally constructed by Sir Alfred Frederick Bird
Sir Alfred Bird, 1st Baronet
Sir Alfred Frederick Bird, 1st Baronet was a British chemist, food manufacturer and Conservative Party politician...
(1849–1922), the son of Alfred Bird
Alfred Bird
Alfred Bird was a British food manufacturer and chemist. He was born in Nympsfield, Gloucestershire, England in 1811 was the inventor of a series of food products mostly now taken for granted...
(1811–1878), the inventor of egg-free instant custard
Custard
Custard is a variety of culinary preparations based on a cooked mixture of milk or cream and egg yolk. Depending on how much egg or thickener is used, custard may vary in consistency from a thin pouring sauce , to a thick pastry cream used to fill éclairs. The most common custards are used as...
. The architectural firm commissioned to design the building was Hamblins. The architect was Augustus William Brenchley Macer-Wright who married Ellen Kate Hamblin, known as Jenny, who was the daughter of the man behind the Architect Firm's name. At one time, a thousand people worked there.
After the Bird company's departure to Banbury
Kraft Foods Banbury
Kraft Foods in the Ruscote ward of Banbury, Oxfordshire, England is a large food and coffee producing factory in the north of the town.It was built in 1964 and was partly due to the London overspill...
in 1964, the buildings were redeveloped from 1992, in two initial phases. The architect for the redevelopment project was Birmingham-based Glenn Howells
Glenn Howells
Glenn Howells is a British born architect. His practice, Glenn Howells Architects, has offices in Birmingham and London. Howells founded his practice in London in 1990 but later moved the main office to Birmingham in 1992....
Architects. The redevelopment of the Custard Factory began in January 1992 when the project was given £800,000 as a City Grant Award. This public sector funding levered in £1.6 million of private sector investment for the refurbishment of 100000 sq ft (9,290.3 m²) of redundant buildings, providing 145 units for use by artists, designers and communicators. The first phase created around 300 jobs, half of which were previously unemployed. By the completion of the Custard Factory project, it is anticipated that a total of 1,000 jobs will be created.
Phase one consisted of the refurbishment of Scott House which is now home to a community of hundreds of media companies, artists and small creative enterprises. The loading bay was turned into a lake around which the developers installed around 200 studio workshops above the ground floor - plus on the ground floor a café
Café
A café , also spelled cafe, in most countries refers to an establishment which focuses on serving coffee, like an American coffeehouse. In the United States, it may refer to an informal restaurant, offering a range of hot meals and made-to-order sandwiches...
, meeting rooms, dance studios, holistic therapy rooms, art display cases in the foyer and a larger gallery space called "The Gallery" at the rear, a record and clothes shop, sculpture (a huge iron dragon
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
crawls up the exterior of the Medicine Bar), and fountains within a central pool area which is sometimes emptied to allow for dance music events. The Medicine Bar and Kitchen have provided a stage for many musicians, DJs and rappers. A 220-seat theatre was also provided, inspired by the Custard Factory Theatrical Company who first asked for space at the Custard Factory before the project commenced.
Phase two - originally named 'The Greenhouse', but now 'Gibb Square' after the Gibb Street location - was completed opposite the Custard Factory in 2002. It focuses on new media
New media
New media is a broad term in media studies that emerged in the latter part of the 20th century. For example, new media holds out a possibility of on-demand access to content any time, anywhere, on any digital device, as well as interactive user feedback, creative participation and community...
and media businesses. It includes a hundred studio/offices, a ring of poolside shops, galleries and restaurants plus the Green Man
Green Man
A Green Man is a sculpture, drawing, or other representation of a face surrounded by or made from leaves. Branches or vines may sprout from the nose, mouth, nostrils or other parts of the face and these shoots may bear flowers or fruit...
, a 40 ft (12.2 m) high sculpture
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
by Tawny Gray
Tawny Gray
Tawny Gray, born Toin Adams in 1965 in Kitwe, Zambia, is a sculptor working in steel, acrylic, fibreglass and other media. She spent her early childhood in eastern Rhodesia , and late teen years, from 1980, in South Africa, where she attended an experimental school devoted to the visual and...
- a huge structure made from vegetation and stone, standing next to a large water feature and overlooking the alleyway that divides the Custard Factory from the Gibb Square development.
Zellig
In March 2007, the regional development agency, Advantage West Midlands, announced new funding for the Custard Factory of £9.6m, to open 100 new office and workspace units. The result was Zellig, a restored grade II listed building, featuring a new sculpture, the Deluge, by sculptress Toin Adams and opened in May 2010.The Zellig offices and studios have brought about an influx of young British creative businesses that have made this site the home to their successful companies and brands. The Zellig is proud to host and represent brands such as the HOUSE OF BLAK which is the host company for the network of brands blak™ [Full service cretaive agency featuring web design, corporate branding, smart phone application design & graphic design firm] ctrl+creative™ [creative artist management and promotion firm] Twenty Two™ [Fashion Distribution & Fashion E-Boutique] the Zellig also hosts International Designer Jewellery label Jewel Heritage. Whose hand crafted, locally produced jewellery has been featured in publications such as Elle and Vogue and a lot more.
Co-located media training
The presence of the Custard Factory has enticed two media training agencies to locate nearby. The old Trades Union Studies Centre, very near, is now a media and arts annexe of South Birmingham CollegeSouth Birmingham College
South Birmingham College is an establishment of further education in Birmingham, England providing full-time and part-time courses for young students following their period of compulsory education and for adults...
with a new building alongside it. In 2005, the VIVID
VIVID (media arts)
VIVID is a centre for the production and exhibition of media art, located in the Digbeth area of Birmingham, England.Established in 1992, VIVID works with contemporary new media and artist moving image through production, commissioning, exhibition and event programmes.VIVID commissions and exhibits...
media centre moved from the Jewellery Quarter
Jewellery Quarter
The Jewellery Quarter is an area of Birmingham City Centre, England, situated in the south of the Hockley area. It is covered by the Ladywood district. There is a population of around 3,000 people in a area....
to a site very near the Custard Factory.
About 800 yards (731.5 m) away from the Factory is the new "Progress Works" complex, opened in 2005 as part of the Custard Factory quarter, on Heath Mill Lane. "The Bond" complex is also a short walk away.
Three-quarters of a mile north is BIAD
Birmingham Institute of Art and Design
The Birmingham Institute of Art and Design is the largest British university art and design teaching and research centre outside London. It is a faculty of Birmingham City University and the largest, most successful department of the university.-History:BIAD dates back, in various incarnations, to...
, the largest British university art & design teaching and research centre outside London.
Nearby entertainment and shopping locations
Many different events take place at the Custard Factory, from music nights to theatre, poetry readings and storytelling. Located nearby are two renowned music venues, The Sanctuary (formerly the Digbeth InstituteDigbeth Institute
Digbeth Institute is a civic building in Digbeth, Birmingham, England.It is now operated as the hmv Institute, a 2,400 capacity music venue...
) and AIR
AIR (nightclub)
AIR is a 2,000 capacity superclub located in Digbeth, Birmingham in England. AIR originally started out life as a spray shop for buses, when in 2000 the building was bought by Godskitchen and converted into a club, originally named CODE. In 2003, CODE had a complete refit and was renamed AIR, with...
, home to and owned by Godskitchen
Godskitchen
Godskitchen is an international superclub brand which is associated with dance music and organises events, particularly in the UK and US. The company runs a club night of the same name at their nightclub AIR, in Birmingham, England and has an in-house music label...
the trance
Trance music
Trance is a genre of electronic dance music that developed in the 1990s.:251 It is generally characterized by a tempo of between 125 and 150 bpm,:252 repeating melodic synthesizer phrases, and a musical form that builds up and breaks down throughout a track...
superclub
Superclub
Superclub is a term used to refer to a nightclub owned and managed by a dance music record label, such as The Haçienda club, which was owned by Factory Records...
. The Custard Factory is close to the Old Crown pub, a half-timbered building dating from the 15th century; Digbeth Coach Station
Digbeth Coach Station
Birmingham Coach Station is a major coach interchange in Digbeth, Birmingham, England offering services to destinations throughout Great Britain and also to Belfast, Dublin and Poland. National Express, the largest scheduled coach service provider in Europe, has its national headquarters on the site...
, Birmingham's main coach travel station; and the Bull Ring which is Birmingham's main shopping centre, with its landmark Selfridges
Selfridges
Selfridges, AKA Selfridges & Co, is a chain of high end department stores in the United Kingdom. It was founded by Harry Gordon Selfridge. The flagship store in London's Oxford Street is the second largest shop in the UK and was opened on 15 March 1909.More recently, three other stores have been...
building. The Custard Factory itself boasts its own retail section home to many independent stores.
Occupants
Notable past and current occupants include:- [House of Blak] Blak // Ctrl+Creative // Twenty Two
- Fused MagazineFused MagazineFused Magazine is an art, design, music and fashion magazine based in Birmingham, England and distributed throughout the United Kingdom.It is published bi-monthly and distributed through both free and paid-for channels...
- Cartoonist Alex HughesAlex HughesAlex Hughes is an English freelance cartoonist, caricaturist and illustrator, whose work is published in Tribune and has been used in PC Pro, Red Pepper and by the BBC's The Midlands at Westminster and Five's Live With Christian O'Connell...
- Maverick TelevisionMaverick TelevisionMaverick Television is a television and multiplatform production company with offices in Birmingham, England and London, England.Notable programmes produced include the health brand Embarrassing Bodies, the make-over show 10 Years Younger and How to Look Good Naked, all produced for Channel 4.In...
- North One TelevisionNorth One TelevisionNorth One Television is a television production company based in London and Birmingham, England, and Sydney, Australia. It was originally known as Chrysalis Television and is now part of All3Media....
- Punch RecordsPunch RecordsPunch Records is UK's premier Music & Arts development agency - It produces concerts, festivals, tours and innovative educational & outreach programmes for young people-History:...
- Rhubarb RadioRhubarb RadioRhubarb Radio is an internet and community radio station in Birmingham, England. It began broadcasting test transmissions in August 2008 from its studio in the Custard Factory...
- The Gadget ShowThe Gadget ShowThe Gadget Show is a British television series focusing on technology and is broadcast on Channel 5. Originally a thirty minute show, it was extended to forty-five minutes, then later to fifty five minutes. Repeats have also aired on the digital channels 5*, Dave and Channel 5's Internet on-demand...