£28, Image & Reality, £28, hardcover, ISBN 9781738424566
Mik Critchlow’s Coal Town is a heartfelt tribute to Ashington, Northumberland – a town once known as the largest mining village in Europe. This redesigned edition coincides with the opening of a permanent gallery dedicated to Critchlow’s work at the Woodhorn Colliery Museum, now part of Museums Northumberland.
Born and raised in Ashington, Critchlow was intimately connected to the community he documented. His father, grandfather, and brothers were all miners, grounding his perspective in lived experience. He once remarked, ‘You have to be in the tribe to photograph the tribe. You have to do the same dance.’ This ethos permeates the book, which captures the rhythms of daily life: galas, whippet racing, bingo nights, and the quiet dignity of work and family.…